the key interdependencies among the various infrastructures. It seems appropriate at this juncture to take stock of several of the broader cross-cutting issues and policy challenges that emerge from the discussion. The challenges arise first of all from the fact that demand patterns for infrastructure services will change between and across countries as well as within countries. At the same time, the nature of infrastructure is likely to change as technology and user requirements evolve. Finally, financing the maintenance of existing infrastructure and deploying new ones, as well as managing change in an holistic manner across separate albeit interrelated facilities, will raise challenges of their own. Challenges relating to the changing geography of infrastructure The growing internationalisation of the economy and its impact on infrastructures Globalisation impacts on infrastructures in different ways. As the economy's engagement in international trade and services increases, SO does the need to ensure that transport, energy, water and telecommunications have the capacity to absorb intensifying levels of economic activity. Congestion problems may become particularly acute at a country's entry and exit points (ports, airports, frontier road crossings) and on the transport corridors leading to them. This is currently the case in parts of North America, Europe and Asia, as many economies struggle to cope with the surge in business generated by China's rapid growth. Similarly, the demands of an expanding world economy on supplies of electricity are straining many OECD countries' networks, making it vital to ensure that power transmission across frontiers is able to smooth out fluctuations in demand and make up for lost supply capacity in the event of disruption. And as markets grow, the search for economies of scale and scope accelerates and supply chains become increasingly global and sophisticated, notably as the volume of INFRASTRUCTURE TO 2030: TELECOM, LAND TRANSPORT, WATER AND ELECTRICITY - ISBN 92-64-02398-4