Recommended citation: Naidoo, C.P, Sheehama, A., Xotyeni, A. “Reflections on the Relevance Of Cost Transparency Standards to South Africa’s Financing Climate-Resilient Infrastructure” Working Paper, South African CoST Steering Group. Rabia Transitions Initiative. Johannesburg.
The Global Infrastructure Transparency Initiative known as CoST is an initiative established in 2012 being applied in Afghanistan, Ethiopia, Guatemala, Malawi, Nepal, and Ukraine. One of their burning questions was how can their work integrate finance flows that address climate impacts on infrastructure projects. Our mission was to assist the South African Steering Committee in evaluating CoST's pillars - Multi-stakeholder working, Disclosure, Assurance, and Social accountability - against local disclosure principles. The focus was on improving transparency at the project level and developing a climate-related lens for financing infrastructure. We identify two key entry points for applying CoST in South Africa:
- Collecting data to track finance flows and promote transparency around climate-focused infrastructure investments.
- Disclosing data for public benefit, empowering individuals and communities to advocate for their rights in how infrastructure projects are financed and implemented.
South Africa may benefit from CoST's expertise in embedding elements of disclosure and assurance in infrastructure projects, whereas CoST could learn from South Africa's quality-driven approach in multi-stakeholder engagement and social accountability.
