The Seventh Session of UNESCWA Committee on Transport will convene at the UN House, Beirut, on Monday 17 April 2006 at 10:00 a.m. under the auspices of Lebanese Minister of Public Works and Transport Mohammed Safadi. The meeting will continue until 19 April and discuss major issues that concern the transport sector due to its importance and its direct impact on the economies of the countries in the region.

This year’s Committee will review progress made in the implementation of the International Road and Railways Agreements in the Arab Mashreq and ways to implement the Memorandum of Understanding on Maritime Transport Cooperation in the Arab Mashreq at the local and regional levels as soon as possible. The Session will discuss the information system related to the Integrated Transport System in the Arab Mashreq as well as Road Traffic Safety. It will also review UNESCWA projects being implemented in transport and which are being funded by extra-budgetary resources.

All UNESCWA member countries (Bahrain, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Palestine Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, United Arab Emirates, and Yemen) have expressed a wish to attend this major event and will be dispatching representatives of ministries of transport and public works as well as specialists in road and rail transport and traffic safety. Representatives of concerned international and regional organizations will also be attending the meeting.
UNESCWA is looks forward to following-up the implementation of the recommendations of the 6th Session on Transport held in Beirut on 22-24 March 2005 and to raising the issues it deems necessary to the 24th Ministerial Session to be held in Beirut from 8 to 11 May 2006. This is especially true of the draft resolution on the follow up of implementation of the Integrated Transport System in the Arab Mashreq (ITSAM) in all its aspects.

More information on the Committee can be obtained from the website: www.escwa.org.lb/about/gov/committees/transport.asp
or contact: Nabil Abu-Dargham, Information Officer, Tel: +961-1-978 894, Mobile: +961-3-428 438, Email: dargham@un.org