Impact of Belt and Road Initiative on Energy and Environment for Sustainable Development: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), launched in 2013 by Chinese President Xi Jinping, aims to enhance economic relations between China and global regions, emphasizing sustainable development through renewable energy initiatives. Despite its potential benefits, concerns about the BRI's environmental and energy impacts persist, necessitating a comprehensive analysis. This systematic review and meta-analysis utilized a rigorous search across multiple databases and included studies from database inception to 2024. Criteria included research on the BRI's influence on energy, environment, and sustainable development, focusing on publications in energy, environmental science, economics, econometrics, and finance. Review encompassed 87 relevant documents, employing content analysis, bibliometric analysis, and systematic literature review techniques. Co-authorship, co-citation, and co-word analyses provided insights into research networks, thematic evolution, and keyword relationships. Findings highlighted the BRI's effects on green energy, carbon emission reduction, foreign direct investment, global value chains, and environmental sustainability, with notable contributions to understanding economic structures, trade patterns, and regulatory frameworks. Study contributes significantly to understanding how the BRI influences sustainable development, emphasizing the need for integrated impact assessments, governance frameworks, inclusive development, technological innovation, long-term environmental impacts, and policy evaluations. Future research directions include evaluating environmental laws, assessing social and environmental impacts, and promoting evidence-based policymaking for sustainable BRI initiatives. The Belt and Road Initiative's complex effects on energy, environment, and sustainable development underscore the importance of holistic assessments and interdisciplinary approaches to inform policymaking and achieve sustainable development goals within BRI projects.