KATHMANDU: The transport sector must emerge from the COVID-19 Pandemic as a driver of sustainable growth with three critical factors in mind— ‘SDG’, which in this case stands for ‘Safety, Data and Green’, Asian Development Bank (ADB) President MasatsuguAsakawa said at the seventh Asia and the Pacific Transport Forum 2020 today.
“The pandemic dealt the transport sector a massive blow that will be felt for years,” Asakawa told the online gathering, taking place from August 24 to 28, with more than 1,200 participants from the government, businesses, academia and international organizations across the Asian and Pacific region.
“Our work now is to focus on mitigating the negative effects of the pandemic so that economies can adapt to the changed landscape and rejuvenate transport services. At the same time, issues that existed before the pandemic still require action. These include transport infrastructure, road safety, and freight and public transport challenges,” he added.
Asakawawas speaking at the start of the opening high-level panel on the New Normal for Transport in Developing Asia. The panel was joined by Secretary General of the International Transport Forum Young Tae Kim, Chief Executive Officer of the Institute for Transportation and Development Policy Heather Thompson, President Director of PT Blue Bird Noni Purnomo, and Chief of the ADB Transport Sector Group Jamie Leather.
The panelists shared their respective views on the pandemic’s effects on the sector, and actions being taken across the region and globe to adapt transport to the new normal.