Online Reporter
Freeman Razemba in GENEVA, Switzerland
Zimbabwe is now at an advanced stage as it works towards ratifying four Conventions on inland transport and vehicle regulations that play a vital role in international transport, trade facilitation, and road safety.
The four Conventions are the 1957 Agreement Concerning the International Carriage of Dangerous Goods (ADR), the 1958 Agreement Concerning the Adoption of Uniform Technical Prescriptions for Wheeled Vehicles, Equipment, and Parts That Can Be Fitted and/or Used on Wheeled Vehicles and the Conditions for Reciprocal Recognition of Approvals Granted on the Basis of These Prescriptions; the 1997 Agreement Concerning the Adoption of Uniform Conditions for Periodical Inspection of Wheeled Vehicles; and the 1998 Agreement Concerning the Establishment of Global Technical Regulations for Wheeled Vehicles, Equipment, and Parts That Can Be Fitted and/or Used on Wheeled Vehicles.
Transport and Infrastructural Development Minister Felix Mhona said this during the 88th session of the United Nations (UN) Inland Transport Committee (ITC) that is being held at the Palais des Nations in Geneva.
“Zimbabwe is at an advanced stage towards ratification of four Conventions relating to inland transport and vehicle regulations. We will move swiftly to finalise the parliamentary process to deposit the requisite instruments of ratification before the year ends.
“Indeed, Zimbabwe embraces smart, win-win partnerships and sustainable cooperation with multilateral stakeholders within the framework of the ITC, guided by our foreign policy of being an enemy to none and a friend to all. We do not doubt that cooperation inspires innovation in inland transport,” he said.
These legal instruments encompass road traffic rules, vehicle safety standards, dangerous goods transport, and infrastructure, serving as a foundation for national legal frameworks.
They are essential for building efficient, harmonised, integrated, safe, and sustainable transport systems worldwide.
These Conventions are a common asset and a public good of the United Nations for the harmonisation and safety of transport systems.
So far, Zimbabwe is a contracting party to the Convention on Road Traffic of 19 September 1949 and the Convention on Road Traffic of 8 November 1968.
Established in 1947, the ITC has provided an intergovernmental forum for contracting states of the United Nations to come together through annual sessions and working groups to forge tools for economic cooperation and adopt international legal instruments on inland transport.
Its 59 international legal instruments, covering road, rail, inland waterways, and intermodal transport, are indispensable sources for developing efficient, harmonised, safe, and sustainable inland transport systems.
