No Yardstick

After a year defined by pandemic-driven policies, the government is eager to shift the focus back onto development projects, from the National Projects to the National Development Goals. The core problem is still the question of how to stimulate investment, including into social infrastructure, in regions and in cities, which risk becoming protest hotspots, without significant private investment and without ceding political and fiscal power to regions. Development policies remain a mixture of projects driven by short-term political interests and grandiose long-term visions, but the government is an increasingly important player and the focus is shifting.