Public-private partnerships are entering a new phase. Organized by PPPCoE, the Istanbul PPP Week with the overarching theme of Human Prosperity, focused on how the next generation of PPPs must be structured to better integrate SDGs, resilience, defence and digitalization. The message was clear: infrastructure that does not consider the SDGs at the same level as returns and efficiency, ultimately carries costs; one that undermines market confidence, deters investment, and shifts risk back to the public. Tools such as the FAST-Infra Label and the Blue Dot Network (BDN) were highlighted as cornerstones for translating these ambitions into practice, helping align public and private stakeholders around a shared definition of quality infrastructure.

From a financing perspective, this challenge was showed by the recent report Financing Infrastructure for Safe and Sustainable Mobility, authored by Global Infrastructure Basel Foundation (GIB) and FIA Foundation. Transport infrastructure will represent close to 30% of global infrastructure investment needs by 2050, yet unsafe roads already cost countries up to 5% of GDP each year through fatalities, injuries, disruptions, and higher operating and insurance costs. The report shows that by linking safety to asset performance, contractual incentives and financing terms, it is demonstrated that targeted safety and access investments can protect and enhance returns in both toll-road and mass-transit systems, particularly when they improve connectivity for vulnerable road users and first/last-mile access to high-capacity public transport. This reinforces why standardisation matters: credible frameworks can help ensure that sustainability and safety are embedded whilst supporting projects' economics.

On the other hand, another challenge is the lack of costs dedicated to the resilience aspects of the project. As recently highlighted by AON’s report, climate-related disaster losses exceeded USD 360 billion in 2024. In addition, according to Howden, it is emphasized that the protection gap or the amount of assets not insured, is accounting more than 60%. GIB last year white paper highlights how resilience, governance, and Nature-based Solutions can crowd in private capital by reducing risk and protecting long-term value. By defining what “resilient infrastructure” means in practice, the FAST-Infra Label supports further standardisation and alignment of PPPs and helps build trust across the full value chain, from policymakers and procuring authorities to investors, insurers and operators.

The FAST-Infra Label was presented as a practical, two-step solution to support this transition. The free of charge Self Assessment process on the Application Portal, backed by Bloomberg’s expertise and technology, enables a rapid evaluation of a project’s sustainability performance and potential impacts and has already provided an accessible entry point for more than 100 projects. As PPP frameworks evolve, aligning around common standards and embedding tools like FAST-Infra Label and Blue Dot Network into procurement and governance processes will be key to shaping future best practices. 

FAST-Infra invites PPP practitioners to join this collective effort to future-proof infrastructure and channel investment toward projects that truly deliver long-term public value.