Online Reporter
Freeman Razemba in GENEVA, Switzerland
ZIMBABWE is today taking centre stage at the 88th session of the United Nations Inland Transport Committee, where Transport and Infrastructural Development Minister Felix Mhona is set to address a high-level ministerial panel on innovation, digitalisation, artificial intelligence and automation in inland transport.
The session, being held at the Palais des Nations in Geneva, is running under the theme, “Driving innovation for the future of inland transport”.
It started yesterday and ends on Friday.
Delegates from across the globe are attending the gathering, which brings together policymakers, regulators and industry leaders to shape the future of transport systems.
Minister Mhona is leading the Zimbabwean delegation, which includes the ministry’s legal advisor Advocate Kingston Magaya, Traffic Safety Council of Zimbabwe board chairperson Mr Kura Sibanda, managing director Mr Munesu Munodawafa and other senior Government officials.
Zimbabwe’s participation underscores its intention to strengthen transport policies, align with global standards and deepen regional and international co-operation.
More than 20 ministers, alongside senior government officials, heads of international organisations and industry representatives, are deliberating on strategic priorities and a wide range of policy, governance and technical issues affecting road, rail, inland waterways and intermodal systems.
The United Nations Inland Transport Committee (ITC) serves as the UN platform for inland transport and aims to address global and regional needs in the sector.
The current session comes at a time of significant transformation within both the United Nations system and the global transport industry.
Central to discussions are mega-trends such as automation, artificial intelligence, digitalisation and data-driven governance.
The meeting is examining how innovation can be responsibly harnessed through coherent, science-based and interoperable regulatory frameworks to make inland transport safer, greener and more resilient.
Senior representatives from key international bodies are also participating, including the International Transport Forum, International Road Transport Union, International Union of Railways, International Motor Vehicles Inspection Committee and the International Organisation of Motor Vehicle Manufacturers.
The high-level segment is moving beyond general discussions of innovation to confront concrete policy choices governments face today.
Among the key issues under consideration are how to regulate AI-driven and automated vehicles before the technology fully matures, while ensuring safety without stifling innovation.
Delegates are also debating how countries can align digital standards and data systems to enable seamless cross-border movement of trucks, trains and cargo without creating cybersecurity risks or widening digital divides.
Over the past 75 years, the ITC and its subsidiary bodies have provided an intergovernmental forum where the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe and UN Member States collaborate to develop tools for economic cooperation and adopt international legal instruments governing inland transport.
These instruments are regarded as essential for building efficient, harmonised, integrated, safe and sustainable transport systems worldwide.
