The International Road Federation was very pleased to join the transport community at the International Transport Forum 2022 (ITF 2022) held in Leipzig, Germany on 18 – 20 May. A special edition of ITF Summit not only because it was the first one hosted in person after two years, but also because it marked for our Federation the start of the IRF Presidency of Mr Anouar Benazzouz.
Here some of the highlights of this productive week spent in Leipzig!
New IRF President Takes Up Function
Elected by the IRF General Assembly, Mr Anouar Benazzouz succeeds to Mr Bill Halkias who has concluded his three-year mandate at the helm of IRF.
At the Summit, Mr Benazzouz received the best wishes of the Moroccan Minister of Transport & Logistics, H.E. Mohammed Abdeljalil who commented “We are proud of the leadership Morocco is demonstrating at international level when it comes to innovating transport systems. We take these engagements truly at heart and are committed to contribute and to work with others to deliver a sustainable mobility to all.”
Read the full press release here.
Ministers’ Roundtable on Road Safety: IRF President Stresses the Role of Private Sector
IRF President, Anouar Benazzouz, joined the Ministerial Roundtable on 18 May. The MRT explored how synergies can be created to support a sound implementation of the Decade of Action 2021-2030. How can governments encourage action on road safety as a cross-cutting issue in sustainable development? How can governments ensure that both road safety and other policy objectives are achieved? How can governments and the international community accelerate these efforts through international cooperation?
These some of the questions on the table for discussion by a high-level panel that included among others: areTomas Eneroth (Minister of Infrastructure, Sweden), Hildegarde Naughton (Minister of State at the Department of Transport, Ireland), Pete Buttigieg (Secretary of Transportation, USA), Mohammed Abdeljalil (Minister of Transport and Logistics, Morocco), Graziella Marok-Wachter (Minister of Infrastructure and Justice, Liechtenstein), Andrzej Bittel (Secretary of State at the Minister of Infrastructure, Poland).
“The potential contribution of private sector to road safety still remains largely untapped today. We need to learn to better harness the power of corporate resources and their presence in our communities” stressed IRF President in his intervention. “It is important to understand how private companies integrate road safety into their overall sustainability efforts and which are the most effective strategies they apply to do so”. M. Benazzouz reported also on the work being carried out by the IRF – with the support of the TotalEnergies Foundation – for the creation of private sector road safety coalitions around the world.
Read more and access pictures here.
Regulating for Inclusive Access: Lessons for Transport from the Pandemic
During the height of the pandemic, we all learned what it means to be a person with reduced mobility due to the restricted access to various opportunities. For people with disabilities, this is a daily reality. In response to barriers in access and reduced mobility, people with disabilities often have to adapt quickly, and in pragmatic ways. The need for adaptability is a key lesson from the pandemic, and it illustrates opportunities for short-term action to shape inclusive urban mobility after the pandemic.
IRF DG, Susanna Zammataro shared during the session some of the key learnings from research IRF conducted – together with the Global Alliance of road safety NGOs – on the impact of Covid-19 on transport and mobility in Africa.
Access summary, pictures, and recording here.
Open Ministerial – Governing for Inclusion: the Right Framework for Universal Access
The Open Ministerial focused on the ways better regulation, improved coordination and clear roles and responsibilities among authorities at all levels of government can help promote social and economic inclusion.
Addressing an impressive line-up of ministers, IRF President – Anouar Benazzouz said the theme chosen for this year edition of the Summit could not resonate any better with “the organization that I represent. IRF’s mission is in fact to promote road networks that enable access and sustainable mobility for All. For the past 75 years we have been working relentlessly – to build in our sector enabling partnerships to address critical issues. And definitively, access and inclusion are two such critical issues” he said.
IRF President brought to table the importance of proper stakeholders’ engagement, meaning “ensuring that solutions to address the needs of all people are truly designed with them and not just for them”. He concluded his intervention by underlining the importance of research and data to understand the context and dynamics of decision-making. Referring to pioneering work done by SuM4All, he stressed that “Data and data sharing, in particular, can help speed up the pace of change in a number of key areas”.
Read more and access pictures here.
Asian Transport Outlook as a Common Transport Knowledge Base for Asia and the Pacific
To improve the knowledge base on transport in Asia and the Pacific, the Asian Development Bank launched the Asian Transport Outlook (ATO). Its objective is to help countries in the region develop and implement transport policies, programmes and projects. It also tracks the implementation of global agreements on climate change and sustainable development in the Asian region. Apart from this, the ATO is of direct use for the planning and delivery of transport assistance by the ADB and other donors.
Held on 19 May, this event presented an overview of the accomplishments of the ATO and provided an outline of the plans for the future. IRF Senior Programme Manager & Head of Statistics, Julia Funk, joined a panel of experts representing the users of the ATO as well as other providers of transport data and policy information to share IRF’s 58 years of experience in data collection and management.
Side Event on Resilient Transport for More Resilient and Inclusive Societies
Transport professionals, business leaders, heads of international organisations, policy makers and leading researchers joined this side event at the ITF Summit on 20 May hosted by IRF together with the High-Volume Transport Applied Research Programme (HVT) and SuM4All.
Under the theme “Resilient Transport for More Resilient Societies”, the event exposed key findings of HVT’s research on what is needed for a more equitable transport, particularly in times of distress. IRF Director General, Susanna Zammataro, moderated the event that welcomed a high-level panel of speakers from the UK Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO), the HVT Research Programme, Walk 21, SuM4All, the UN Environment Programme (UNEP), CEPT University and ITP.
A summary of the event is available here.
PIARC’S Biannual Advisory Group Meeting
PIARC met with partners both in-person and online to discuss emerging issues in the light of preparations for the upcoming PIARC strategic plan 2024-2027. IRF DG Susanna Zammataro and Gonzalo Alcaraz, Deputy DG were present and contributed to the discussion with a short presentation on what are – in the view of IRF – key strategic areas where collaboration is needed.
IRF has been regularly attending the PIARC Advisory Group which meets twice a year, and it is designed to provide an opportunity for PIARC and its partners to discuss strategic issues, share news and identify opportunities for collaborations with other organisations that are active within the road transport sector.
Bilateral Meetings
The Summit offered a unique opportunity for bilateral meetings…
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