21 May 2024, Bridgetown, Barbados – Today, the Manifesto for intermodal, low-carbon, efficient and resilient freight transport and logistics was launched at the first United Nations Global Supply Chain Forum organised by United Nations Trade and Development and the Government of Barbados from 21– 24May 2024. Gathering support from more than 30 multi-stakeholder organisations, the manifesto underscores the urgent need for freight transport and logistics transformations to help our economies and societies respond to interconnected challenges and remain competitive, equitable and resilient, while keeping global warming to 1.5ºC.
Accelerating the transformation of freight transport and logistics is among the most impactful steps the global community can take to enable overall positive socio-economic transformations by mid-century. We call on governments and businesses to prioritise systems that efficiently and resiliently combine low-carbon services from the first to the last mile, be that local or intercontinental. Urgent actions are needed to transition to zero emission fuels and renewable energy, optimising logistics systems and creating local and circular value chains.
www.slocat.net/transforming-freight-transport I #TransformingFreightTransport
“Freight transport and logistics connect goods, markets and consumers, driving socio-economic development,” emphasises Maruxa Cardama, SLOCAT Secretary General. “They can significantly enhance people’s quality of life, boost local production, jobs, tax revenue, circularity and resilience to shocks, and reduce energy consumption and emissions. This transformation is critical to accelerate the transition to a low-carbon economy, green jobs, low-carbon technologies and low-carbon value chains.”
In the spirit of a multi-stakeholder partnership, SLOCAT and Kühne Foundation, together with CONCITO, IDDRI, International Transport Workers’ Federation, Smart Freight Centre, UIC International Union of Railways and World Resources Institute have co-initiated this manifesto.* While each country will adopt its own pathway, the manifesto outlines a series of critical enablers to enable this transformation.
All organisations that believe in the importance of transforming freight transport and logistics are invited to join and sign The manifesto.
The coming months present pivotal opportunities to accelerate national and multilateral action on freight transport and logistics through the negotiations and discussions at, inter-alia, the UN Summit of the Future (New York, September 2024), and the UN Climate Change Conference COP29 (Baku, November 2024), as work begins on the UN sustainable development agenda post-2030. The manifesto will also contribute to building up technical capacity through a compendium of policy and financing interventions and multi stakeholder dialogue.
*Visit the manifesto website for the full list of signatories.
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