Evolving Infrastructure for Future – Asrar Qureshi’s Blog Post #1171

Evolving Infrastructure for Future – Asrar Qureshi’s Blog Post #1171

Dear Colleagues! This is Asrar Qureshi’s Blog Post #1171 for Pharma Veterans. Pharma    Veterans Blogs are published by Asrar Qureshi on its dedicated site https://pharmaveterans.com. Please email to pharmaveterans2017@gmail.com  for publishing your contributions here.

Credit: Efrem Efre

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Preamble

This blog post is based on a recent McKiney article. Link to article at the end.

Rethinking Infrastructure for the 21st Century: More Than Roads and Bridges

We, in Pakistan, face a unique situation. Whenever a new government is formed, whether from older contenders or the newer ones (rarely), there is a flurry of activity in the name of the new government. New projects are started in haste so that more and more plaques could be installed with the names of incumbents engraved on them. The projects are announced in haste, without consulting the stakeholders, or considering the financial situation. Infrastructure development is most favorite because it is most visible. Some roads and bridges are really lifeline for people, while many be an exercise in showmanship. The following post, based on McKinsey article, articulates about where the infrastructure development should be directed for future.

Infrastructure has long been seen as the backbone of civilization; roads, bridges, ports, power grids, water systems. But McKinsey’s “What Is Infrastructure?” reminds us that infrastructure in our era is evolving rapidly. Infrastructure is no longer just concrete, steel, and pipes—it now includes digital networks, clean-energy systems, electric-vehicle corridors, and smart grids.

The Changing Definition of Infrastructure

Traditional vs. Modern Infrastructure

Traditionally, infrastructure has been physical, capital-intensive, and long-lived: roads, railways, airports, ports, power lines, water and sewage systems. Those assets required large upfront investments and had long payback periods. Modern infrastructure, by contrast, brings in new dimensions:

Digital infrastructure: fiber-optic cables, data centers, connectivity networks (5G, IoT).

Clean-energy and low-carbon systems: renewable energy generation, microgrids, energy storage, smart grid systems.

Mobility infrastructure: electric vehicle charging corridors, smart mobility networks, integrated urban transit systems.

Service layers: operations, maintenance, digital monitoring, predictive maintenance, and software controls.

These new forms share many qualities of “traditional” infrastructure, durability, scale, capital intensity, but also bring modularity, tech enablement, and cross-sector integration.

Intersections & Convergence

One of McKinsey’s central themes is that the boundaries between infrastructure verticals are blurring. Transport, energy, digital, water, waste, agriculture, social infrastructure, these are no longer siloed. For example:

EV charging infrastructure sits at the intersection of transportation and energy.

Data centers require power, cooling (water), and connectivity, tying energy, water, and digital sectors.

Waste-to-energy solutions link waste, energy, and agricultural sectors.

Because of these interdependencies, building infrastructure in isolated verticals may fail to capture full value. Planning must become cross-vertical, coordinated, and systemic.

The Investment Scale: A Trillion-Dollar Imperative

To build and maintain infrastructure at the pace needed, McKinsey estimates a cumulative global investment requirement of approximately USD 106 trillion through 2040.

The breakdown across sectors is roughly:

Transportation & logistics: $36T

 Energy & power: $23T

 Digital: $19T

 Social infrastructure: $16T

 Waste & water: $6T

 Agriculture: $5T

 Defense: $2T

More than half of that investment is expected to flow to Asia, driven by fast urbanization, industrialization, and demographic growth.

These numbers are staggering, and they highlight that infrastructure is not just a public sector issue; it will demand massive private capital mobilization, innovative financing, and structural reforms.

Key Challenges and Strategic Imperatives

Meeting this scale of investment and delivering future-ready infrastructure is not just about financing. McKinsey identifies several challenges and imperatives across stakeholders:

Shift Mindsets: From Silos to Systems

Governments, investors, and operators need to break out of siloed thinking. Instead of viewing infrastructure by vertical (roads, power, water), the lens must shift to how systems interrelate and deliver integrated value. Coordinated planning across verticals becomes essential.

Enabling Regulatory & Policy Ecosystems

To attract private capital, governments must provide predictability and certainty: clear permitting, regulatory frameworks, stable policies, land rights, and streamlined processes. The risk of policy reversal or red tape is a deterrent to investment.

Innovation in Financing

Traditional public funding is insufficient. Creative models—public-private partnerships (PPPs), blended finance, viability gap funding, user-pay models (e.g. “asset-as-a-service”), become critical. Because many new infrastructure assets can generate recurring revenue (e.g. charging, data, digital services), operators can design new monetization models.

Technology & Asset Resilience

Infrastructure must be “smart.” Embedding sensors, digital twins, predictive analytics, AI for maintenance and operations, and IoT networks improves resilience, efficiency, and uptime. Asset resilience also demands climate and disaster considerations (e.g. floods, heatwaves).

Modularity & Decentralization

Instead of large monolithic systems, modular, decentralized designs—microgrids, distributed networks, containerized infrastructure units—allow faster deployment, adaptability, and scalability. This architecture also supports resilience and upgradeability over time.

Operation & Service Models

The value of infrastructure increasingly resides not just in the asset, but in the operations and services layered on top. Maintenance, reliability, uptime guarantees, performance contracts, and data-driven service models matter more than mere construction.

Implications for Developing Countries (e.g. Pakistan)

While McKinsey’s framework is global, the insights have direct relevance for developing markets. In Pakistan (or similar economies), the implications include:

Leapfrog Opportunities: Instead of replicating legacy infrastructure, Pakistan can leap into digital, renewable, and modular solutions (e.g. solar microgrids, fiber connectivity) to accelerate growth.

Cross-sector Projects: Building EV corridors, digital networks, smart city infrastructure, and clean energy together rather than in silos.

Mobilizing Private Capital: Use PPPs, blended finance, and risk-guarantee instruments to attract private investors.

Regulatory Reform: Streamline permitting, land acquisition, tariff regulation, and meta-planning to reduce bottlenecks.

Maintenance Focus: Neglected maintenance erodes infrastructure value fast. Emphasize operations, asset management, and resilience from the start.

Local Innovation: Use local startups, tech companies, and engineers for pilot projects—digital platforms, IoT networks, locally designed modules.

Five Strategic Takeaways for Leaders

Think Beyond Vertical Boundaries

Whether in government, infrastructure agencies, or private firms, challenge silo thinking. Seek investment and design projects that span energy, mobility, digital, and urban planning.

Adopt a Phaseable, Adaptive Approach

Implement infrastructure in modular phases. Use pilot zones before scaling, validate models, then expand. Build in upgrade paths and flexibility.

Design for Operations, Not Just Construction

Always plan for the full life cycle—maintenance, monitoring, performance management. Allocate resources for long-term service, not just capital build.

Embed Technology from Day One

Plan for sensors, data infrastructure, monitoring, and digital control layers. Avoid “bolting on” tech later—it’s costlier and less effective.

Align Incentives & Accountability

Make sure that stakeholders making decisions (public agencies, departments) are accountable for outcomes. Encourage governance models that tie approvals to performance incentives.

Sum Up

The McKinsey article is not just a theoretical treatise; it is a call to action. We are at an inflection point: traditional infrastructure will not be enough to meet 21st-century challenges. Climate change, digital transformation, urbanization, energy transition, and rising connectivity demands force a reimagining of infrastructure.

Those who adapt—from leadership teams and policymakers to investors and engineers—will define which nations thrive and which stagnate in the coming decades.

Concluded.

Disclaimers: Pictures in these blogs are taken from free resources at Pexels, Pixabay, Unsplash, and Google. Credit is given where available. If a copyright claim is lodged, we shall remove the picture with appropriate regrets.

For most blogs, I research from several sources which are open to public. Their links are mentioned under references. There is no intent to infringe upon anyone’s copyrights. If, any claim is lodged, it will be acknowledged and duly recognized immediately.

References: 

https://www.mckinsey.com/featured-insights/mckinsey-explainers/what-is-infrastructure?stcr=E8B6D90CB208492B8F37D823A21EB5FC&cid=mgp_opr-eml-alt-mexp-mgp-glb--&hlkid=2d875e072967434693a9ed51bfc5a62b&hctky=15999472&hdpid=5b6710dd-18e8-4093-a95e-164a97339867