On April 17, 2024, a high-level meeting on Cooperation in the Field of Sustainable Transport was held in the UN General Assembly Hall, initiated by Turkmenistan.
The meeting, convened by the President of the UN General Assembly D.Francis, as part of the Sustainable Development Week, was attended by the heads of specialized international organizations, executives of national ministries and departments of the transport sector, heads and representatives of diplomatic missions of UN member countries.
Noting the active role of Turkmenistan in promoting the global transport agenda, the participants drew attention to the challenges contending the world community in the development of sustainable transport. The importance of implementing joint coordinated actions to ensure accessible, affordable and sustainable transport for all was noted, which should be the main goal of the action plan being developed for the implementation of the UN Decade on Sustainable Transport for 2026-2035.
The decisions of the UN General Assembly, adopted at the initiative of Turkmenistan, on the proclamation of the UN Decade on Sustainable Transport for 2026-2035, the establishment of World Sustainable Transport Day on November 26, were identified as the foundation for the world community to take joint practical steps and build international cooperation in the field of transport. Documents adopted following the results of the UN Global Conferences on Sustainable Transport in Ashgabat in 2016 and in Beijing in 2021.
Noting the importance of holding a high-level meeting on one of the key areas of implementation of the global Development Agenda until 2030, at the initiative of Turkmenistan, for the first time at the UN General Assembly. Speakers noted the necessity to use this opportunity to build a multilateral transport dialogue at a high level in order to develop strategies for achieving transport sustainability around the world, development of reliable infrastructure, exchange of best practices.
During the meeting, national delegations of UN member countries also raised the following issues of multilateral cooperation in the field of transport:
− increasing the volume of investments in the development of transport infrastructure, communication technologies, building expert potential and developing regulatory framework for cooperation in the field of transport;
− development and improvement of multimodal transport systems, transit transport corridors, international logistics hubs;
− integrating sustainable transport policies into climate change mitigation and adaptation measures, promoting environmentally friendly modes of transport;
− expanding access to modern types of public transport;
− the need to provide accessible, affordable and environmentally friendly transport services at the national level, taking into account the social aspects of transport development.
Following the meeting, the Office of the President of the UN General Assembly will prepare a consolidated report and recommendations.
