January 30, 2013

Global Leaders Chart Path for Sustainable Development: ITDP Urges Focus on Sustainable Transport

Photo: Nobel Peace Prize Winner and President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf of Liberia (2nd from Left) and Ramon Cruz of the Institute for Transportation and Development Policy (3rd from Left) at the January 2013 meeting of the Secretary General’s High Level Panel on the Post-2015 Sustainable Development Agenda.
Photo: Nobel Peace Prize Winner and President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf of Liberia (2nd from Left) and Ramon Cruz of the Institute for Transportation and Development Policy (3rd from Left) at the January 2013 meeting of the Secretary General’s High Level Panel on the Post-2015 Sustainable Development Agenda.

 

By Michael Replogle and Ramon Cruz

Representing ITDP and the Partnership on Sustainable Low Carbon Transport (SLoCaT) at a meeting of the UN Secretary General’s High Level Panel on the Post-2015 Development Agenda in Monrovia, Liberia, Ramon Cruz today urged that sustainable transport be recognized as a key element of sustainable development. The Panel is co-chaired by President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono of Indonesia, President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf of Liberia, and Prime Minister David Cameron of the United Kingdom. It includes leaders from civil society, private sector and government. SLoCaT today released a letter to the Panel outlining the opportunities of sustainable transport.

Various panel members spoke supportively. Amina Mohammed from Nigeria said that infrastructure is essential for development. Ambassador Kagawa from Japan emphasized that, “infrastructure is the very basis for the promotion of industry and business. It is the hardware of society.” He talked about the importance of public-private partnerships to improve investment in infrastructure projects and the importance of access and connectivity.” In her last intervention in a roundtable on Farming, Traders, Informal Sector, Trade Union and Small Business, Betty Maina of Kenya said that transport infrastructure was something that the Panel has not discussed and that it was something that is very important to development.

“The world’s eight largest multilateral development banks pledged $175 billion for more sustainable development over the next decade at the Rio+20 Conference on Sustainable Development in June 2012,” said Michael Replogle, ITDP’s Managing Director for Policy and Founder. “Timely progress on this pledge will depend on strengthening the demand for sustainable transport investments from nations across the world. This UN Panel should focus on not just on sustainable cities and sustainable energy, but also sustainable transport as a key ingredient for sustainable development progress. How we allocate streets determines how well we can live.”

For more information, visit the UN Secretary General’s High Level Panel, and view the letter to the panel from the SLoCaT.

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