As an intergovernmental organisation as acting as a strategic policy think tank for the transport sector, every year the International Transport Forum organises an Annual Summit under the auspices of the OECD bringing together players from the Transport sector and Ministers from more than 50 Member countries and beyond.
This Summit, which has become the leading platform for global dialogue on the future of transport and mobility, is a unique opportunity for policy-makers, business leaders, research and civil society to meet and exchange new ideas and future orientations for transport.
For the 2012 summit, Leipzig welcomed more than one thousand representatives or high level stakeholders from over 50 countries. This year the event, organised under the Presidency of Japan, focused on “Seamless Transport: Making Connections’, providing the opportunity to ask how better connectivity can improve lives and stimulate the economy. The Summit was opened by Mr Osamu Oshida, Senior Vice-Minister in the Ministry for Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism of Japan and several keynote speakers.
During the Summit, The OECD Secretary-General Angel Gurria underlined the link between transport and growth by saying that ‘better connected transport will drive greener growth’. He added that this sector could play a crucial role in moving the world economy onto a more sustainable path for development and pointed out that “Going green in transport does not mean giving up mobility: it implies mobility with a smaller environmental footprint”. “Thinking seamless is a bid to align mobility aspirations with aspirations for greener growth.”
The Railway sector took part in discussions, through the presence of several UIC Members, including Vladimir Yakunin, President of the Russian Railways (RZD), Rüdiger Grube, CEO of the German Railways (DB AG), Yoshiyuki Kasai, President and Director of Central Japan Rail, Satoshi Seino, Chairman of East Japan Rail Company (JR East), Japan and Mitsuo Higashi, JR East.
Jean-Pierre Loubinoux, UIC Director-General, was pleased to participate at this Forum once again as close partner of the OECD and its International Transport Forum. During the Summit, he participated in several meetings as well as a Ministerial Round Table during which he underscored the imperative complementarity of all modes of transport, not only from the seamless transport point of view but more specifically in case of major crises such as volcanic ash clouds.
