This book addresses the prospects and challenges concerning both soft and hard infrastructure development in Asia and provides a framework for achieving Asian connectivity through regional infrastructure cooperation towards a seamless Asia. Key topics included are: - demand estimates of national and regional infrastructure in transport, electricity, information and communication technology, and water and sanitation; - empirical results on the costs and benefits of regional infrastructure for economies and households; - the impact of infrastructure development on the environment and climate; - sources and instruments of infrastructure financing; - best practices and lessons learned from the experiences of the Asian region and other regions; and - experiences of public-private partnership projects. This insightful book will serve as a definitive knowledge product for policymakers, academics, private sector experts and infrastructure practitioners interested in the regional and national infrastructure demand, investment and benefits in the region. Concerned officials from private and public sectors, and other experts involved in environmental and natural resources studies will also find this compendium invaluable. Contributors: R. Adhikari, N. Banik, B.N. Bhattacharyay, H. Dick, M. Fujimura, K.-C. Fung, A. Garcia-Herrero, J. Gilbert, T. Hertel, M. Kawai, R.M. Nag, F. Ng, J. Nunez-Ferrer, P.J. Rimmer, S. Stone, A. Strutt, W. van der Geest, F. Zhai, Z. Zhang

This book addresses the prospects and challenges concerning both soft and hard infrastructure development in Asia and provides a framework for achieving Asian connectivity through regional infrastructure cooperation towards a seamless Asia. Key topics included are: - demand estimates of national and regional infrastructure in transport, electricity, information and communication technology, and water and sanitation; - empirical results on the costs and benefits of regional infrastructure for economies and households; - the impact of infrastructure development on the environment and climate; - sources and instruments of infrastructure financing; - best practices and lessons learned from the experiences of the Asian region and other regions; and - experiences of public-private partnership projects. This insightful book will serve as a definitive knowledge product for policymakers, academics, private sector experts and infrastructure practitioners interested in the regional and national infrastructure demand, investment and benefits in the region. Concerned officials from private and public sectors, and other experts involved in environmental and natural resources studies will also find this compendium invaluable. Contributors: R. Adhikari, N. Banik, B.N. Bhattacharyay, H. Dick, M. Fujimura, K.-C. Fung, A. Garcia-Herrero, J. Gilbert, T. Hertel, M. Kawai, R.M. Nag, F. Ng, J. Nunez-Ferrer, P.J. Rimmer, S. Stone, A. Strutt, W. van der Geest, F. Zhai, Z. Zhang