Measuring the Emissions & Energy Footprint of the ICT Sector - Implications for Climate Action

Jul 19, 2026

Uploaded by Patrick

Joint ITU/World Bank research measures emissions and the energy footprint of the ICT sector and explains how these metrics support climate action. The report outlines emissions reporting and tracking approaches, analyzes telecommunications GHG emissions and electricity demand, and examines carbon/energy intensity and network efficiency drivers. It also reviews other ICT subsector sources such as data centers and embedded/product-use emissions, then presents country case studies to translate findings into policy takeaways for decision-makers.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages54

Reading Time2 h 16 min

AccessFree to download

Foreword

Acronyms

Executive Summary

Key policy takeaways

1. Introduction

2. Measuring the ICT Sector Emissions and Energy Demand

2.1 Emissions Reporting and Tracking

2.2 Telecommunications GHG emissions and energy consumption

2.3 Other sources of emissions from ICT subsectors

2.4 ICT sector global GHG emissions and electricity evolution

3. Country Case Studies

Measuring the Emissions & Energy Footprint of the ICT Sector AJoint ITU/WB Report Pub lic Disclosure Authorized Pub lic Disclosure Authorized Pub lic Disclosure Authorized Pub lic Disclosure Authorized Copyright and publication information The World Bank and ITU. 2024. Measuring the Emissions & Energy Footprint of the ICT Sector: Implications for Climate Action. Washington, D. C. and Geneva. ISBN PDF: ISBN 978-92-61-38541-5 © The World Bank and International Telecommunication Union, 2024 Some rights reserved This work is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 IGO license (CCBY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO; [https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/igo](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/igo)), unless otherwise indicated in the work. For any uses of this work that are not included in this license, please seek permission from the World Bank and ITU. Third-party materials If you wish to reuse material from this work that is attributed to a third party, such as tables, figures or images, it is your responsibility to determine whether permission is needed for that reuse and to obtain permission from the copyright holder. The risk of claims resulting from infringement of any third party-owned component in the work rests solely with the user. General disclaimers The designations employed and the presentation of the material in this publication do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of The World Bank, or the ITU concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries. The ideas and opinions expressed in this publication are those of the authors; they do not necessarily reflect those of The World Bank and ITU. The mention of specific companies, products or services does not imply that they are endorsed or recommended by The World Bank or ITU in preference to others of a similar nature that are not mentioned. Errors and omissions excepted; the names of proprietary products are distinguished by initial capital letters. All reasonable precautions have been taken by The World Bank and ITU to verify the information contained in this publication. However, the published material is being distributed without warranty of any kind, either expressed or implied. The responsibility for the interpretation and use of the material lies with the reader. In no event shall The World Bank or ITU be liable for damages arising from its use. Acknowledgements The World Bank Group and ITU developed this report with support from the Digital Development Partnership and the Korea Green Growth Trust Fund. A joint team of Seth Ayers and Sara Ballan, World Bank, and Vanessa Gray and Rosie McDonald, ITU, led the preparation of the report. The team would like to thank the peer reviewers, including Anders Pederson and Luciano Charlita De Freitas, World Bank, and Jean-Manuel Canet, Orange Group, and Casey Torgusson, World Bank, who chaired the peer review process and provided valuable guidance. In addition, the team would like to recognize the contributions of colleagues from the ITU, World Bank, and the World Benchmarking Alliance, as well as representatives from Brazil, France, Rwanda, Singapore and the United Kingdom. ISBN 978-92-61-38541-5 CONTENTS FOREWORD .................................................................................................................................. iv ACRONYMS ................................................................................................................................... v EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ..................................................................................................................... 1 Key policy takeaways .......................................................................................................... 3 1. INTRODUCTION ..............................................

FAQs

What does the report measure about the ICT sector?

It measures emissions and the energy footprint of the ICT sector, focusing on greenhouse gas emissions and electricity demand across key subsectors.

How does the report approach emissions reporting and tracking?

It describes emissions reporting and tracking methods, then connects them to telecommunications GHG emissions, energy consumption, and efficiency drivers.

Which ICT subsectors are analyzed beyond telecommunications?

The report examines other emissions sources from ICT subsectors, including data centers and embedded/product-use emissions.

Jul 19, 2026

Uploaded by Patrick