13 April 2011: The workshop on “NAMAs as Catalysts of Environmentally Sustainable Transport” was hosted by the Korean Transport Institute, and organized by the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA), the Partnership for Sustainable, Low Carbon Transport (SLoCaT), and the Bridging the Gap Initiative, in Seoul, Republic of Korea, from 12-13 April 2011.

The workshop addressed social, economic and environmental aspects of transport as co-benefits to achieving low carbon transport systems. It aimed to contribute to: preparations for the decisions dealing with transport of the 19th session of the CSD in May 2011; the 17th session of the Conference of the Parties to the UNFCCC (COP 17) in Durban, South Africa, at the end of 2011, in regard to inclusion of sustainable transport considerations in nationally appropriate mitigation actions (NAMAs); and the UN Conference on Sustainable Development (UNCSD or Rio+20) outcomes relating to transport in the green economy and with importance to achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

The workshop was attended by 60 participants from 23 countries, who discussed how the NAMA concept can best be operationalized in land transport in developing countries. The general conclusions and recommendations emerging from these discussions include that: access to goods and services plays a critical role in poverty alleviation and economic development and achieving the MDGs; to ensure the sustainability of transport, unnecessary transport should be avoided, modal shifts should be promoted, and fuel efficiency should be favored; an integrated multi-sectoral approach to the planning and implementation of transport policies and programmes involving all levels of decision making and all stakeholders should be undertaken; and effective mitigation of climate change in the transport sector will require substantial capacity building.

The SLoCaT Partnership is an initiative of over 58 organizations, is registered with the Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD), and has the objective of improving knowledge on sustainable low carbon transport to help develop better policies and catalyze their implementation. SLoCaT partners co-financing the workshop and follow-up actions were: the Korean Transport Institute (KoTI); the Asian Development Bank (ADB); the Institute for Transportation and Development Policy (ITDP); the German Agency for International Cooperation (GIZ); and the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB). [Workshop Website]