Goal 9: Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure – UNEP

Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialization and foster innovation

Sustainable industry, innovation, and infrastructure are paramount to living in harmony with nature and improving health and education outcomes globally. Some 2.3 billion people lack access to basic sanitation, while 2.6 billion have unreliable access to electricity.

Goal 9 and the environment

Infrastructure – including buildings and transportation – is crucial to economic development but currently poses serious risks to human and environmental health. In the race to advance development, industry and infrastructure are often unsustainable, aggravating the triple planetary crisis and leading to direct and indirect long-term economic losses.

With rapid urbanization and an ever-growing global population, humanity must initiate multiple major transformations simultaneously to achieve environmental targets, including the Paris Agreement. Yet conflicts, including in Ukraine, and the COVID-19 pandemic have highlighted inefficiencies across industry, innovation and infrastructure. Climate-related shocks and stressors undermine the stability of infrastructure systems and their ability to provide essential services, especially to the most vulnerable.

Investing in climate-resilient infrastructure in low- and middle-income countries can save US$4.2 trillion worth of damages from climate impacts. Around 75 per cent of the infrastructure that will exist in 2050 has yet to be built, so humanity has a unique opportunity to improve building design, construction, retrofitting and operation. Only by doing this can we embrace low emissions, resource efficiency and resiliency to adapt to and overcome the triple planetary crisis.

SDGs, Targets, and Indicators

1. SDG 9: Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialization and foster innovation

   • Target 9.1: Develop quality, reliable, sustainable, and resilient infrastructure

     • Indicator: Access to basic sanitation
     • Indicator: Reliable access to electricity

   • Target 9.4: Upgrade infrastructure and retrofit industries to make them sustainable

     • Indicator: Investment in climate-resilient infrastructure

   • Target 9.5: Enhance scientific research, upgrade technological capabilities, and promote innovation

     • Indicator: Industry and infrastructure sustainability

Analysis

The article addresses and connects to SDG 9: Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialization and foster innovation. It highlights the importance of sustainable industry, innovation, and infrastructure for living in harmony with nature and improving global health and education outcomes.

Based on the article’s content, the following specific targets under SDG 9 can be identified:

1. Target 9.1: Develop quality, reliable, sustainable, and resilient infrastructure

   The article mentions that 2.3 billion people lack access to basic sanitation, indicating the need to develop quality and sustainable infrastructure to address this issue. Additionally, it states that 2.6 billion people have unreliable access to electricity, highlighting the importance of reliable infrastructure.

2. Target 9.4: Upgrade infrastructure and retrofit industries to make them sustainable

   The article emphasizes the need to invest in climate-resilient infrastructure in low- and middle-income countries to save US$4.2 trillion worth of damages from climate impacts. This aligns with the target of upgrading infrastructure and retrofitting industries to make them sustainable.

3. Target 9.5: Enhance scientific research, upgrade technological capabilities, and promote innovation

   The article mentions the importance of embracing low emissions, resource efficiency, and resiliency to adapt to and overcome the triple planetary crisis. This highlights the need to enhance scientific research, upgrade technological capabilities, and promote innovation to achieve sustainable industry and infrastructure.

The article provides indicators that can be used to measure progress towards the identified targets:

• The indicator of access to basic sanitation can be used to measure progress towards Target 9.1.
• The indicator of reliable access to electricity can also be used to measure progress towards Target 9.1.
• The indicator of investment in climate-resilient infrastructure can be used to measure progress towards Target 9.4.
• The indicator of industry and infrastructure sustainability can be used to measure progress towards Target 9.5.

SDGs, Targets, and Indicators

Source: unep.org