Skip to main content

IRF Geneva signs MoUs on transport policy and development

Agreements are with International Transport Forum and Union for the Mediterranean
By Adam Hill May 28, 2024 Read time: 2 mins
Susanna Zammataro of IRF Geneva with ITF's Young Tae Kim

The International Road Federation (IRF Geneva) has signed separate Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) with two organisations: the International Transport Forum (ITF) and the Union for the Mediterranean (UfM).

Transport policy thinktank ITF is linked to the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).

Susanna Zammataro, director general of IRF Geneva, says: "We firmly believe in the power of collaborations to deliver meaningful change."

IRF Geneva and ITF "are uniquely positioned to pioneer innovative initiatives that address the evolving challenges and opportunities in the global mobility landscape".

By combining IRF's understanding of road infrastructure with ITF's policy expertise, the partnership "seeks to pioneer innovative solutions in areas such as road safety, decarbonisation, digitalisation and financing mechanisms tailored to the sector's needs".

They will collaborate on events, workshops, project development and data analysis.

“The collaboration between ITF and IRF holds great promise for driving positive change in the transport sector," agrees Young Tae Kim, ITF secretary general. "Together, we can address pressing challenges, foster innovation, and create a more sustainable and inclusive transportation system by combining our expertise and resources.”  

Meanwhile, IRF's MoU with UfM is designed to advance sustainable road transport across the Euro-Mediterranean Region in the face of "unprecedented challenges".

UfM's Francesc Carbonell with Susanna Zammataro

UfM is an intergovernmental organisation bringing together the 27 Member States of the European Union and 16 southern and eastern Mediterranean countries.

IRF Geneva says the new strategic alliance with UfM will allow the organisations "to pool their expertise and resources, address pressing challenges and seize opportunities in the road transport and mobility sectors, ultimately contributing to the region's sustainable development and prosperity."

Road safety, decarbonisation, digitalisation and innovation are among the areas on which the IRF and UfM will work closely to exchange information, coordinate activities and organise joint initiatives.

For "at least three years" the parties will collaborate on professional training courses, conferences, and projects in addition to data collection and analysis.

UfM head of sector for transport, Francesc Carbonell, explains: “The goal of the UfM in the field of transport is to achieve a gradual, but solid progress towards developing an integrated, multimodal, efficient, sustainable and resilient transport network, with a view to achieving deeper integration among Euro-Mediterranean countries."

He called the MoU "a significant step forward in our efforts to enhance mobility and connectivity across the region".

Both agreements were signed at the ITF Annual Summit in Leipzig.

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • New ITF Projections for urban mobility in China, India, Latin America
    December 19, 2014
    Transport in the urban centres of emerging economies is becoming a major battleground for combating climate change. Projections presented by ITF Economist Aimée Aguilar Jaber during the COP 20 climate change negotiations in Lima, Peru indicate that big cities in China, India and Latin America with over 500,000 inhabitants will more than double their share of world passenger transport emissions by 2050 to 20 per cent, from nine per cent in 2010, if current urban transport policies remain unchanged. 38 pe
  • NEC to work with Royal Borough of Greenwich for smart city solutions
    October 23, 2015
    NEC Corporation has announced today that NEC Europe has signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the Royal Borough of Greenwich in London to collaborate on the use of big data analytics and visualisation to improve public and commercial services for local residents, as part of the newly-announced Greenwich Smart City Strategy. Digital Greenwich, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Royal Borough of Greenwich, promotes the development of the digital economy in the borough. This includes developing inn
  • Optibus expands end-to-end platform with Control
    June 16, 2025
    Modular solution helps public transportation providers with live service delivery
  • Head of ITF appointed US advisor on sustainable transport
    September 16, 2015
    ITF Secretary-General José Viegas has been appointed to UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s High-Level Advisory Group on Sustainable Transport. The High-Level Advisory Group was established in 2014 to provide the UN Secretary-General with actionable policy recommendations on sustainable transport on national, local and sector levels and to promote the integration of sustainable transport both in development strategies and climate action. The group has a three-year mandate. It will next convene during the