William Petty, who leads IRU’s work in Africa, highlighted the importance of implementing harmonised professional standards and training in the road transport sector in order to drive up efficiency and safety, at a workshop in Nairobi last week.
Organised by the World Bank’s Africa Transport Policy Program (SSATP) and co-hosted by the Northern Corridor Transit and Transport Coordination Authority (NCTTCA), the workshop contributed to the design of the SSATP’s next 4 year programme on “Regional Integration, Connectivity and Cohesion Policies.”
IRU highlighted that trade and transport facilitation can often be boosted simply by implementing existing instruments, like the UN TIR Convention, which could help to simplify and reduce the costs of moving goods in transit and across borders.
The IRU Academy, in particular through the development of a network of IRU Accredited Training Institutes, was also showcased as a valuable tool for increasing driver and operator professionalism and ensuring harmonised standards.
The workshop provided the opportunity to discuss challenges, experiences and best practice on goods transport issues in Africa, with participants from every African Regional Economic Community and transport corridor organisation, the World Bank, the African Development Bank, as well as a range of private sector stakeholders in the forwarding and transport sector.
Original source: IRU
