Infrastructure Vulnerability to Disruption: A Particularly Pacific Problem

Infrastructure and climate have important roles in driving the water-energy-food nexus in the Pacific region. The significance of infrastructure is woven throughout the United Nation’s 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, with Sustainable Development Goals relevant to infrastructure and its links to the water-energy-food nexus. Pacific Island Countries and Territories (PICTs) differ from larger developed neighbouring countries in Oceania such as Australia and New Zealand, bringing about a unique set of challenges for infrastructure. Physical characteristics include small, remote populations and small land masses, and susceptibility to natural hazards. Institutional challenges such as governance, small economies, and limited infrastructure expertise are prevalent. Yet, despite all these challenges, climate change is perhaps the largest. This chapter considers the interconnectivity of infrastructure and the water-energy-food nexus, and the importance of building climate resilience within the infrastructure sector reflected through the lens of three key infrastructure areas namely maritime transport, coastal protection, and Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WaSH) infrastructure.