22 February 2026 2:03 am
How Jeddah Tower Surpassed 80-Floor Mark

How Jeddah Tower Surpassed 80-Floor Mark

Jan 13, 2026

Image above of the Jeddah Tower – Construction Week

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World’s Tallest: How Jeddah Tower Surpassed 80-Floor Mark

By Libby Hargreaves
Construction DIGITAL, January 12, 2026
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Saudi Arabia’s Jeddah Tower surpasses 80 floors
Saudi Arabia’s Jeddah Tower surpasses 80 floors, advancing towards becoming the world’s first kilometre-high building by 2028

The skyline along Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea coast is experiencing significant transformation as the Jeddah Tower officially moves past the 80-floor mark.

The important milestone, confirmed on 6 January, 2026, signals that the world’s first “kilometre-high” structure is no longer a distant concept, but a rapidly advancing reality shaped by engineering excellence and logistical coordination.

Following a seven-year pause that began in 2018, the project – formerly known as the Kingdom Tower – resumed full-scale operations in January 2025. Since then, the construction site has become a centre of industrial activity, advancing at what engineers describe as a “blistering” pace.

The Jeddah Tower serves as the centrepiece of the broader Jeddah Economic City, a 57-million-square-foot development designed to reposition the Kingdom as a premier global hub for business and luxury tourism.

Designed by Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill, the firm behind Dubai’s Burj Khalifa, the structure is engineered to reach a final height of at least 1,008 metres.

Jeddah Tower will be the world’s tallest

Overcoming unprecedented physical constraints

Achieving such verticality requires overcoming unprecedented physical constraints.

The Saudi Binladin Group (SBG) was rehired in late 2024 under a SR 7.2bn (£1.5bn/US$2bn) contract. Following their return in January 2025, SBG representatives note that resuming a “paused” megastructure presented immense technical challenges.

At the recommencement ceremony, the group emphasise their commitment to Vision 2030 goals, stating the project is now “utilising advanced ‘pumpcrete’ technology capable of delivering high-performance concrete to heights never before reached in human history.”

According to Thornton Tomasetti, the project’s structural engineers, the central core and flanking wings indicate more than 50% of the total concrete work is now complete. The current delivery schedule is notably aggressive, with crews adding a new floor approximately every three to four days.

In a technical update released on 6 January, 2026, Thornton Tomasetti confirmed the tower is on track to reach its 100th floor by February.

The companty highlights the structural core is performing exactly as modelled in wind-tunnel tests, state: “The Jeddah Tower project advanced strongly in 2025… our team is pairing innovation with advanced computational modeling to ensure the structure withstands the unique wind forces at 1,000 metres.”

The tower’s “three-petal” footprint is not merely aesthetic; it is a critical aerodynamic feature designed to shed wind vortices and reduce structural sway at extreme altitudes.

The observatory terrace

Managing complexity at unprecedented scale

Managing the sheer scale of the site falls to Turner Construction, which took over project management in March 2025. It describes the site as “one of the most complex construction environments on Earth,” requiring precise coordination between the tower’s construction and the surrounding infrastructure of Jeddah Economic City.

Perhaps the most technically demanding aspect is the vertical transport system. Finnish elevator specialists KONE are installing 59 lifts, including five double-decker units.

KONE describes the Jeddah Tower as the ultimate “proving ground” for their UltraRope technology, states that the elevators will travel at speeds exceeding 10 metres per second, using “carbon-fibre cores to eliminate the weight issues associated with traditional steel cables in supertall buildings.”

Delivery timeline and strategic importance

The completion of the Jeddah Tower, currently slated for August 2028, is a cornerstone of Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030, serving as a symbol of the nation’s economic diversification and technical ambition.

Talal Ibrahim Al Maiman, CEO of the Jeddah Economic Company (JEC)

Talal Ibrahim Al Maiman, CEO of the Jeddah Economic Company (JEC), remarked during the 80th-floor celebrations: “Jeddah Tower will serve as a beacon of innovation and a catalyst for growth… Today’s progress represents the realization of a vision that was years in the making.”

At its final height, the Jeddah Tower will stand roughly 173 metres taller than the Burj Khalifa, claiming the crown of the world’s tallest building. It will house a luxury hotel, high-end residences and the world’s highest observation deck, featuring a cantilevered “sky terrace” overlooking the Red Sea.

While the tower is currently the Kingdom’s most prominent project, it is part of a wider vertical race; plans are already in motion for the Rise Tower in Riyadh – a £4bn (US$5.3bn) proposal aimed at reaching a staggering two kilometres in height.

For now, however, attention remains on Jeddah, as the construction sector watches the first kilometre-high landmark take shape along the Red Sea coast.

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Shaping the Future of Construction in the Middle East

Shaping the Future of Construction in the Middle East

Jan 12, 2026

 

Stunning view of Dubai’s iconic skyscrapers under a clear blue sky.  By Aleksandar Pasaric via Pexels

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Shaping the Future of Construction in the Middle East

Shaping the Future of Construction in the Middle East

GCP Construction Chemicals becomes the new Chryso. Born from the strategic alliance between Chryso and GCP, our new brand embodies the best of both companies. It symbolizes our journey and our future in the field of construction specialty chemicals. Courtesy of Chrysso Saint-Gobain.

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Meet the IJNet Newsroom Embed Fellow | International Center for Journalists

by  in ArchiExpo/Emag

Dubai is pushing forward with cutting-edge construction technologies—from fibre-reinforced concrete systems to large-format 3D printing—while regulators and industry leaders work to balance innovation with safety and long-term performance.

In a hurry? Here are the key points:

  • Dubai is rapidly adopting next-generation technologies such as Apis Cor’s 3D-printing systems, Bekaert’s Dramix steel fibres, and GCP’s STRUX macro-fibres to modernize construction.
  • These solutions promise cleaner sites, faster project delivery, reduced rebar use, and lower embodied carbon across major developments.
  • Regulators emphasize that innovation must advance alongside rigorous safety, testing, and performance verification to ensure resilient, code-compliant structures.

Dubai has rapidly positioned itself as one of the world’s most ambitious testbeds for next-generation construction technologies, advancing a built-environment agenda that prioritizes speed, safety, and sustainability at scale. Over the past two years—particularly through 2024 and 2025—the emirate has accelerated the adoption of innovations such as large-format 3D concrete printing by robotics companies like Apis Cor, advanced fibre-reinforced systems from suppliers including Bekaert with its Dramix 4D and GCP Applied Technologies’ STRUX macro-fibres, as well as self-healing admixtures and optimized digital mix-design platforms. These technologies are no longer theoretical experiments; they are being promoted for deployment across industrial flooring, infrastructure tunnels, precast modules, and residential construction. Early use cases promise cleaner construction sites, faster delivery, reduced reliance on conventional reinforcement, and lower embodied carbon in structural elements.

Yet progress requires precision. As Ihab Bassiouni of Dubai Municipality noted during a panel at The Big 5:

“It’s very delicate… how to balance between both. It’s not easy,” referring to the challenge of encouraging innovation while ensuring public safety, regulatory compliance, and long-term performance.

The region’s authorities now face the task of validating emerging systems—whether steel-fiber-reinforced concrete used to replace part of the rebar in foundations, synthetic macrofibres introduced to streamline megaproject flooring, or 3D-printed structural walls produced in hours rather than days. The Middle East’s construction boom makes this balancing act especially urgent: as the sector embraces transformative technologies, regulators must ensure that safety and durability evolve just as quickly.

The Role of Standards in Enabling Safe Innovation

The session was moderated by Mohamed Amer, Managing Director – MENA, International Code Council (ICC), who opened the discussion by emphasizing the role of standards and performance-based design in enabling safe innovation. Amer highlighted the ICC’s responsibility in codes, testing, and certification, noting ongoing collaborations with ACI on low-carbon cement criteria and emerging materials.

Bassiouni emphasized that Dubai’s building code already supports innovation through performance-based provisions, allowing new technologies to be approved even when not explicitly covered in prescriptive rules.

“We give the opportunity to material producers… to create new products and get them used in concrete as an alternative to the prescribed fixed designs,” he added.

Exemplary projects: Dubai’s innovation drive is already visible on the ground — from the Dubai Municipality office printed on-site by Apis Cor in 2019, which showcased rapid, large-format 3D printing for municipal buildings; to Expo City Dubai’s 2024 deployment of Bekaert’s Dramix® 4D fibres in large floor-on-ground areas to reduce rebar, improve crack control and lower embodied carbon; and while GCP Applied Technologies’ STRUX® macro-fibres are actively marketed and supplied into the UAE market and used internationally in high-performance slabs, a publicly documented, named UAE project citing STRUX in press materials is not available at this time and we recommend vendor confirmation for a UAE-specific case.

Understanding the BSA: Building System Approval Process

Dubai Municipality, one of the main governing bodies over the city of Dubai, operates the Building System Approval (BSA) process, which enables comprehensive testing and evaluation of innovative systems through documented research, third-party assessments, and pilot projects. He noted that the authority is introducing an “in-principle approval” stage—a pre-evaluation mechanism allowing system owners to obtain early technical feedback before investing in full-scale pilots or manufacturing facilities.

However, Bassiouni underscored that regulation alone is not enough. The municipality is actively looking to incorporate a new innovative platform designed to bring regulators, academia, consultants, manufacturers, and the public together. 

“Everyone will be part of the whole process,” he said, explaining that this collaborative environment, combined with industry education and sandbox testing spaces, will speed up adoption and reduce uncertainty.

Many engineers, he observed:

“are not aware of new technologies because they are busy with their day-to-day jobs,” making education a crucial priority.

(Left) Flooring: Whether it’s daily traffic, forklifts, robots or even the heaviest of containers, steel fiber floors...; (Right) Precast: Sewer pipes, electric cabins, utility vaults…steel fiber reinforcement is not bound by form. Courtesy of Bekaert.
(Left) Flooring: Whether it’s daily traffic, forklifts, robots or even the heaviest of containers, steel fiber floors…; (Right) Precast: Sewer pipes, electric cabins, utility vaults…steel fiber reinforcement is not bound by form. Courtesy of Bekaert.

ACI’s Contribution to Concrete Knowledge and Standards

Also on the panel was Ahmad Mhanna, Director, Middle East / North Africa Region at ACI, who described how the organization’s century-long history is rooted in industry expertise and continuous evolution.

“We heavily depend on our members… to develop these standards,” Mhanna said, noting that ACI now maintains more than “35,000 pages of concrete knowledge” spanning material science, structural design, construction, repair, resilience, and sustainability.

He highlighted ACI 318—the world’s leading structural concrete design code—as an example of flexibility and innovation-readiness. When a material or system is not covered explicitly, Mhanna explained:

“It allows the use of that material or system in collaboration with the building official and the system owner.”

This pathway, often used alongside ICC acceptance criteria, allows innovations to enter the market without compromising safety.

Shifting Toward Resilience and Whole-Life Performance

Mhanna also addressed ACI’s strategic shift toward resilience and whole-life performance. A resilient structure, he noted, is one that can recover its functionality after a disruptive event—an increasingly important consideration in modern codes. He stressed that long-term operational savings and durability benefits often outweigh higher upfront material costs.

But the biggest barrier, Mhanna argued, is not technology but perception.

“Many engineers don’t have enough background… they deal with it as a new material,” he said, pointing out that solutions such as steel fiber-reinforced concrete have existed for more than 50 years and are globally validated across tunnels, slabs, precast elements, and industrial projects.

Adding the manufacturer’s perspective, Ahmad Mandalawi, Regional Structural and Specification Engineer, Bekaert, reinforced the need for industry-wide education and early involvement of system owners in design. He explained that engineers often hesitate to approve fiber-reinforced systems simply because they fall outside their traditional training or because codes do not yet feature abundant examples. Owners, he added, tend to compare materials “like-for-like” on price rather than examining lifecycle value. He urged stakeholders to focus on “the total cost of ownership,” including reduced construction timelines, labor savings, corrosion mitigation, and long-term durability.

Fiber-Reinforced Concrete in Dubai’s Landmark Projects

Mandalawi said that Dubai Metro Blue Line extension, where steel fiber reinforcement was used in segmental tunnel linings, has seen faster installation and substantial reductions in embodied carbon. He also cited the Expo City townhouses, where switching from traditional rebar to fully fiber-reinforced slabs resulted in up to 30% lower CO₂ emissions, 50% fewer steel bars, and 15–20% total cost savings, all without compromising structural performance.

All panelists have agreed that innovation does not have to come at the expense of safety. With performance-based codes, rigorous testing frameworks, and stronger collaboration between regulators, standards bodies, consultants, and manufacturers, the Middle East is well-positioned to lead a new era of sustainable, efficient, and resilient construction.

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Why smart cities must become integrated urban ecosystems

Why smart cities must become integrated urban ecosystems

Jan 10, 2026

Buildings, illuminated, water, nature, waterfront, skyscrapers, skyline, city lights, cityscape, city view, urban, urban landscape, metropolitan, Dubai city, lights, night, reflection, night photography by Pexels via pixabay

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Why smart cities must become integrated urban ecosystems

Built Environment and Infrastructure

Cities are now at the centre of humanity’s social, economic and environmental future.

By :

This article is part of: World Economic Forum Annual Meeting
  • Nearly half of the world’s population lives in urban areas, with nearly 4 billion people calling cities home.
  • As urban populations continue to grow, cities face challenges such as ageing infrastructure and rising demand for energy.
  • Innovation and collaboration are key to building integrated smart cities for a more sustainable and connected world.

The future of cities depends on the reinvention of how we envision, build and operate communities. We are embracing that responsibility with optimism and a firm belief that integrated smart cities can create a more sustainable and connected world.

Cities across the world are going through a period of profound transformation. According to the United Nations, approximately 45% of the global population lives in urban areas in 2025, with nearly 4 billion people calling cities home.

This represents an extraordinary shift from just decades ago. Cities are now at the centre of humanity’s social, economic and environmental future. As urban populations continue to grow, cities face mounting challenges, including ageing infrastructure, rapidly rising demand for energy, and ever-changing human expectations for digital connectivity and an increased quality of life.

As a result, smart cities have naturally become an important focal point for many sectors, but discussions still remain dominated by technology companies. While digital platforms, internet of things (IoT) devices and AI are all essential components of urban innovation, they alone cannot constitute the complex machine that is the modern city.

Smart cities rely on interplay of multiple systems

Urban environments inevitably rely on the interplay of infrastructure, energy, buildings, mobility and water management – systems that must be conceived, built and operated with precision and long-term stewardship. This is why we, at GS E&C, believe that the future of smart cities requires not only technological innovation, but also the deep engineering, construction and operational expertise that firms like ours have been refining for decades.

The construction industry is at an inflection point, as well. The traditional EPC model – design, build and hand over – no longer aligns with how modern cities function or what today’s society demands. Buildings and infrastructure now generate continuous data.

For example, housing systems interact dynamically with energy and environmental conditions, and people increasingly expect personalized services embedded throughout their daily lives. The boundary between digital and physical systems has blurred, transforming cities into networks that change and evolve in real time.

This convergence reveals a fundamental strategic direction for us. Construction firms must evolve into long-term service providers. The future of urban development lies not in isolated projects, but in integrated ecosystems that require continuous operation and innovation through reinvention.

Urgent need to reshape how urban systems impact environment

The need for this shift is underscored by an urgent global reality. According to the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), the construction sector consumes 34% of global energy and accounts for 37% of global carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions.

Operational emissions from buildings alone reached nearly 9.8 billion tons of CO₂ in 2023. This means that everything in this industry, from the materials we use to the way we operate buildings and infrastructure, is imperative to addressing climate change.

Cities occupy just a small fraction of Earth’s land mass, yet their energy use and emissions will determine the trajectory of the whole planet. Firms like ours have a responsibility – and simultaneously, an extraordinary opportunity – to reshape how urban systems impact the environment.

This evolution is the foundation of our strategic transformation. We aim to shift from a project-based general contractor to a total service provider capable of integrating planning, construction, technology and long-term operation. Our goal is to create urban environments that are not only more efficient and sustainable, but also more connected and resilient.

Integrated vision redefines how smart cities work

To guide this transition, GS E&C developed Life Weaver, the company’s integrated vision for smart cities. Life Weaver is more than just a technological blueprint; it is a new philosophy for how cities should function.

It rests on five principles: harmonized flow of energy, mobility and data; innovation emerging from urban challenges; invisible technology that enhances human desires and creativity; ecological co-evolution with natural systems; and integrated experiences that dissolve the boundaries between services and spaces.

These principles redefine what a city can be – an adaptive ecosystem that is both sustainable and intuitive. Life Weaver envisions urban environments where energy circulates cleanly and efficiently, mobility networks reduce friction and services anticipate the needs of the residents. Technology becomes a seamless backdrop, empowering people without overwhelming them.

To make this vision a reality, we are working on building the capabilities required for operating smart cities. Our Zero Energy City frameworks integrate renewable power generation, energy storage systems and energy prosumers – who produce and consume their own energy – to achieve net zero.

Meanwhile, our smart home and IoT platforms create secure and connected living environments that are capable of automation and personalization. We will work to advance digital twins, data platforms and cybersecurity infrastructures to ensure that cities can be well managed as coherent, intelligent systems.

Our investment arm plays a critical role in this picture, as well. We collaborate with startups in AI, robotics, renewable energy and advanced materials to accelerate innovation. Partnerships with leading academic institutions, including Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), enable us to study, test and deploy new solutions in real environments.

Why smart cities must improve human experience

Yet, at the heart of our vision remains people. The ultimate goal of smart cities must be to improve human experience. Smart cities should reduce energy costs, enhance safety, create cleaner environments and shorten commutes. They should enable healthy lifestyles, support vulnerable populations and foster a greater sense of community. They need to be inclusive places where technology adapts to the lives of people – not the other way around.

As cities become the primary setting of global life – accounting for nearly half of the world population and over 80% of global GDP according to the International Energy Agency (IEA) – their success will define our collective future. This is why transformation towards integrated smart cities matters. It is not simply technological innovation, but rather, an imperative for society.

No single sector can accomplish this alone. Smart cities require collaboration across construction, technology, energy, mobility, academia, the public sector and governments. GS E&C is committed to leading through such partnerships and redefining what it means to build – not just for today, but for future generations as well.

The future of cities depends on the reinvention of how we envision, build and operate communities. We are embracing that responsibility with optimism and a firm belief that integrated smart cities can create a more sustainable and connected world.

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Key Themes Shaping the MENA Region in 2026

Key Themes Shaping the MENA Region in 2026

Jan 8, 2026

Image for illustration: A collection of antique Dallah coffee pots displayed in a Doha market, showcasing Middle Eastern culture. By Fernando B M via pexels

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Age of Agility: Key Themes Shaping the MENA Region in 2026

By Jack Kennedy, Jessica Leyland, Kevjn Lim, Ph.D., Zaineb Al Assam, Jamil Naayem, and Ralf Wiegert

In S&P Global – 7 January 2026

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In 2026, we expect the Middle East North Africa (MENA) region to experience contrasting trends of growth and conflict instability.

S&P Global Market Intelligence forecasts that MENA will be the only major global region with anticipated economic growth in 2026 surpassing that of 2025, following a notable increase of 2.5 percentage points in real GDP growth between 2024 and 2025.

Unresolved conflicts from 2025 are likely to pose significant risks to this forecast, keeping the MENA region, especially the Gulf, at the center of broader global geopolitical trends.

Key takeaways

  • Unresolved conflict escalation pathways from the 12-day June war between Israel/the US and Iran continue to represent the main driver of MENA regional instability and severe interstate war risks in 2026.
  • Military supply chain vulnerabilities and constraints are likely to determine the willingness of all belligerent parties to commit to renewed conflict, spurring more armed exchanges with limited scope and duration.
  • Gulf states, notably the UAE and Saudi Arabia, will continue to focus on integrating US-designed computing, networking, and cloud technologies into their economies. This ongoing strategic shift is expected to stimulate economic growth and enhance security and Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) geopolitical alliances by 2026.
  • The GCC states will drive economic growth in the MENA region, largely driven by increased hydrocarbon output, continued economic diversification efforts, and declining borrowing costs in the GCC.
  • Lower oil prices will hinder MENA hydrocarbon exporters’ external sector performances and likely constrain their ability to generate foreign currency earnings in 2026.

Shifting asymmetric power in MENA

Unresolved conflict escalation pathways from the 12-day June war between Israel/the US and Iran continue to represent the main driver of regional instability and severe interstate war risks in 2026. US-Iran negotiations over a new nuclear agreement have not yet officially resumed. Further airstrikes in 2026 are likely if Israel (and/or the US) assesses that Iran is making significant progress in reconstituting its enrichment, ballistic missile and advanced air defense capabilities. This is especially likely if no US-Iran nuclear agreement is reached, again triggering Iranian counterstrikes on Israeli territory and maintaining the severe risk of escalation to interstate war.

A resumption of war, with Iran’s conventional offensive capabilities weakened, would increase the likelihood of Iran seeking to at least partially obstruct vessel passage in the Strait of Hormuz, significantly disrupting international trade routes and impacting global energy prices to a higher degree than during the June war.

Supply-chain vulnerabilities will probably determine the willingness of the parties involved to commit to renewed conflict, encouraging more armed exchanges of limited scope and duration. The capacity to sustain and replenish air defense interceptors almost certainly influenced Israeli and the US strategy during the June war.

Militant access to relatively affordable offensive capabilities such as uncrewed systems and cruise and ballistic missiles, and a probable increased reliance on other state-fostered capabilities including AI, will continue posing security challenges to established military powers, and maintain the risk of periodic armed exchanges.

Gulf states, notably the UAE and Saudi Arabia, are positioning themselves for a recalibration of shifting power dynamics, focusing on integrating US-designed computing, networking, and cloud technologies into their economies.

Both governments have recognized AI and data center development as core components of their economic diversification plans. The UAE currently leads the Middle East in data center market size, while Saudi Arabia — which ranks second — is also making significant investments to expand its capabilities. The growth of Saudi Arabia’s data centers is anticipated to support broader Vision 2030 infrastructure objectives, particularly in constructing and expanding desalination plants necessary for cooling.

Substantial investments in AI and data centers also come with risks from technological and security perspectives. The ongoing technological rivalry and strategic competition between the US and mainland China is likely to influence GCC access to critical technologies.

GCC countries' contribution to MENA region GDP growth

Shaky economic foundations, new trade realities in MENA

Risks to the MENA region’s 2026 economic outlook are heavily weighted to the downside due to severe regional war risks and soft hydrocarbon prices. We forecast the MENA region, on aggregate, to record sustained economic growth in 2026, but with stark contrasts within the region. The GCC states will drive economic growth in MENA. Real GDP growth will be largely driven by increased hydrocarbon outputs, continued economic diversification efforts, and declining borrowing costs in the GCC.

The growth trend in the MENA region is, in large part, due to the unwinding of oil output restrictions by OPEC+ until September 2025. The region’s oil producers are critically dependent on global oil demand and oil prices. S&P Global Energy projects an average oil price of US$58 per barrel (Brent) in 2026, down by 16% from projected 2025 averages. This will squeeze oil revenues, which could fall further if global growth performs less strongly, weakening demand for oil.

Non-hydrocarbon growth momentum is set to continue across the GCC economies, in line with their economic development strategies and partly helped by hydrocarbon output increases in conformity with OPEC+ decisions. GCC development plans focusing on reducing reliance on hydrocarbons and encouraging private sector involvement into their economies, coupled with robust domestic demand, are likely to drive the recovery of the non-hydrocarbon economy in 2026.

Such a sustained strong momentum will likely be facilitated by further monetary easing by GCC central banks in line with US Federal Reserve moves. Given the long-standing currency pegs to the dollar, which are unlikely to change in the foreseeable future, we currently forecast two policy rate cuts in GCC states in 2026, leading to less costly borrowing and supporting investment activity in the GCC.

Lower energy prices will continue to place adverse pressure on the external balances of hydrocarbon exporters and their ability to accumulate foreign reserves. Outside the GCC, weaker energy prices will also widen the current account deficits of Algeria, Iraq and Libya.

The pause in Houthi attacks on shipping in the Red Sea is unlikely to hold through 2026 if, as is likely, the Gaza ceasefire collapses; we therefore forecast that any recovery in Suez Canal revenues will at best be gradual.

The Age of Agility Is Here

Key economic, geopolitical and trade drivers for the year ahead
Read the Full Report

This article was published by S&P Global Market Intelligence and not by S&P Global Ratings, which is a separately managed division of S&P Global.

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10 positive economic outcomes for developing countries in 2025

10 positive economic outcomes for developing countries in 2025

Jan 7, 2026

Shutterstock/chaphot

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10 positive economic outcomes for developing countries in 2025

In BROOKINGS on January 6, 2026

  • From a growing global middle class to expanding trade and faster, market-driven clean energy adoption, 2025 delivered tangible progress for developing economies despite a difficult global backdrop.
  • Inflation and food price increases are being held in check, and advances in digital public infrastructure, nutrition, and weather forecasting improved everyday resilience for hundreds of millions of people.
  • These gains show that, even amid crisis, targeted investments and multilateral cooperation can still move the needle on sustainable development.

2025 was not a good year for emerging markets and developing economies (EMDEs). It saw a new normal emerge of a world with slow growth, trade wars, overwhelming debt service burdens, collapsing aid, global warming, natural disasters, and conflict.

Amid this litany of woes, it is easy to forget that there were also positive developments. In this commentary, I focus on areas of significant year-over-year progress in EMDEs. This progress may have been slower than potential, but it is nevertheless worth celebrating.

10 positive economic outcomes in EMDEs in 2025

  1. A growing middle class. In spite of slowing growth, about 108 million additional citizens in EMDEs were able to join the ranks of the middle class in 2025, according to data from the World Data Lab. (Disclosure: I am a co-founder of World Data Lab and its Chief Economist.) Most of these new entrants were in South and South East Asia, but Africa and Latin America also saw an increase in their middle-class populations. Globally, the middle class accounted for over half the world’s population for the first time ever.
  2. An expansion of trade. International trade grew strongly in 2025, notwithstanding tariff wars, protectionist measures, and onshoring policies. UNCTAD’s nowcast suggests that global trade in goods and services will exceed $35 trillion in 2025, a rise of 7% over 2024. East Asia’s growth led the way, but African exports also grew strongly—faster than China’s, for example. As one example, Africa led all regions with a 10% rise in tourist arrivals through the first three-quarters of the year. Overall, services growth and South-South trade were leading drivers for EMDE exports.
  3. Faster green energy transitions. In 2025, low-carbon energy transitions in EMDEs became driven by the private sector—utility-scale firms and individual households—responding to lower prices for solar cells and panels. Between August 2022 and August 2025, the average export price of Chinese cells fell from $0.19/W to $0.03/W. Previously, investments depended on government policy, incentives, and publicly mobilized financing. As Tim Appenzeller writes in Science magazine: “That change in motivation may be the most important breakthrough of all, ensuring that this year’s inflection points are just the beginning.”

The scale and speed of the energy transition are impressive. Globally, in the first half of 2025, renewables accounted for a higher share of electricity (34.3%) than coal (33.1%) for the first time ever. This trend was driven by EMDEs: The U.S. and Europe used more coal in 2025 as renewables did not keep pace with demand. China’s story is well-known, but India also added a record 29.5 GW of solar capacity in the first nine months of the year. Similarly, Pakistan has installed around 18GW of solar panels and is on track to produce 20% of its electricity from solar in 2026, compared to 1% in 2023. The focus on renewables spreads well beyond these examples. In Africa, 29 African governments launched National Energy Compacts in 2025 to accelerate energy access and security as part of the newly formed M300 initiative of the World Bank and the African Development Bank.

  1. Peaking global greenhouse gas emissions. It is still too early to tell, but it is possible that 2025 will mark the year when global greenhouse gas emissions flatten or decline. Climate TRACE, a non-profit coalition estimating real-time emissions, showed declining emissions in the early part of 2025 but now a very small increase of 55% in 2025 over 2024, perhaps because of data center use. The start of a downward global trend in emissions would be very good news for EMDEs. They bear the brunt of the natural disasters generated by climate change due to poor infrastructure, vulnerable populations, and reliance on agriculture. The World Resources Institute reckons the world is projected to warm by 2.3-2.9 °C; a dangerous prospect, and a far cry from the Paris 1.5 degree target, but roughly half of what was anticipated when the Paris Agreement was made a decade ago.
  2. Signs that multilateralism can still work. The reports of the death of multilateralism in 2025 were exaggerated. True, some events disappointed, notably the shelving of previously-agreed-upon maritime emissions levies, and the adjournment of talks on a global plastics pollution treaty, but there were examples of success in other areas. A High Seas treaty protecting biodiversity beyond national jurisdictions (BBNJ) was ratified and will legally enter into force in January 2026, providing an established process for marine protected areas and other matters. Both the World Bank and IMF successfully shored up support from their major shareholder, the United States. The International Finance Corporation launched an inaugural collateralized loan obligation, establishing a new class of assets in EMDEs with the potential to reach scale by tapping into global institutional investors.
  3. Business is still investing in sustainability. Despite reports to the contrary and a clear rollback in public policy requirements in the U.S. and Europe, business is still investing in sustainability. The green debt market surpassed $3 trillion in 2025 and, notwithstanding some slowdowns in the U.S. and Europe, issuances in the Asia Pacific region have strongly trended upward. Cost reductions and revenue growth drive corporate sustainability efforts, and there was solid growth in assets and returns in ESG funds in 2025, with particular interest from younger investors.
  4. Inflation and food price increases are being held in check. While negative news on inflation dominated headlines in several advanced economies, EMDE inflation in 2025 was the lowest since the IMF began its tracking in 2016. While there are regional differences, 12-month trailing inflation in Africa is ending the year at half its 2024 level. Some of this is attributable to low prices for traded foodstuffs. The FAO’s commodity price index shows declines in 2025 of the nominal international prices of cereals, dairy, and sugar.
  5. Going digital. After a slow start in building digital infrastructure backbones, developing countries are catching up to the rest of the world. According to the 2025 State of Digital Public Infrastructure report, as of 2025, at least 64 countries (including advanced economies) have DPI-like digital ID systems, 97 countries have DPI-like digital payment systems, and 103 countries have DPI-like data exchange systems, with many more in the planned or piloting stage. According to the same report, “Africa, Asia, and Latin America, and the Caribbean have the most dynamic and rapidly evolving picture for deployments …”
  6. Better nutrition. School meals have long been recognized as highly impactful for nutrition, learning, and overall child well-being. The latest State of School Feeding Worldwide report, released in 2025, finds that 466 million children worldwide receive school meals, with almost half of all primary school children covered. 60% more children are being reached in low-income countries compared to two years ago. Almost all the funding is from national government budgets, suggesting that school meals might escape the effects of the sharp aid reductions of 2025.
  7. More useful weather forecasting. The Extraordinary World Meteorological Congress in October 2025 reported on its shift to go beyond assessing “what the weather will be” to “what the weather will do to lives, infrastructure and livelihoods,” by integrating AI into its operational forecasts. The Early Warnings for All initiative, aimed at providing coverage of multi-hazard forecasts to all people by 2027, had an “unprecedented pace of progress” in 2025, with new pilots and capacity-building projects aimed at developing countries.

All is not well for people living in developing countries. But 2025 did see progress, at considerable scale, in a range of areas. Sustainable development practitioners should celebrate the positives while continuing to advocate for faster progress.

Author

Homi Kharas
Homi KharasSenior Fellow – Global Economy and Development, Center for Sustainable Development
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