Lithuanian Minister of Transport and Communications Marius Skuodis, while participating in the International Transport Forum (ITF) summit in Leipzig (Germany) on 22-24 May, handed over the chairmanship of the ITF to his colleague from Chile, Juan Carlos Muñoz. According to mister Skuodis, a lot has been achieved during Lithuania’s presidency in gathering international support for the restoration of Ukraine’s transport sector: CIG4U, a platform for cooperation and support for Ukrainian transport created together with international partners for the country fighting its aggressor has already mobilised projects for the restoration of transport links worth 5.5 million euros.
“Chairing this global organisation and contributing to the most important decisions in the transport and logistics sector is both a great honour and a responsibility. I am convinced that during these years the international transport community got to know Lithuania better. With our concentrated efforts, we have moved forward in many important areas of transport policy-making, including initiatives to support transport in Ukraine, which are particularly relevant for our region. Today we are handing over the baton of the presidency to Chile and hope to continue the work we have already started together. We wish Chile a smooth and successful presidency,” said Minister of Transport and Communications Marius Skuodis at the presidency transfer ceremony in Leipzig.
Lithuania has chaired the ITF since May 2023, having taken over these duties from the United Kingdom.
During the Lithuanian presidency, solid foundations were laid for the further restoration of the Ukrainian transport sector and the development of transport links in the region. CIG4U (Common Interest Group for Transport in Ukraine), a support group for Ukrainian transport established by Lithuania in cooperation with Sweden, Canada and Ukraine in Kyiv at the end of 2023, allows the countries to effectively exchange experience, analyses, current information about plans for the reconstruction of the Ukrainian transport sector, and to contribute to the long-term development of the country’s transport connectivity restoration projects.
Lithuania, presiding over the ITF for a last year, mobilised 5.5 million euros worth of projects for the reconstruction of Ukraine’s transport infrastructure. In the last six months alone, about 1.2 million euros support has already been mobilised through the CIG4U platform for the preparation of project studies related to the reconstruction of Ukraine’s transport infrastructure.
One of the first Canadian-funded projects is already being implemented by the ITF in the road and rail sectors. The two-year continuous program also includes projects for improving transport management, planning and management, developing sustainable and advanced transport policies and improving road traffic safety.
During the ITF presidency, Lithuania welcomed a total of more than 50 ITF delegations from the countries around the world, and organised or supervised more than 15 large events. The most important of the events held in our country during the ITF presidency is the ITF High-Level Meeting held in April in Trakai on issues of aid to Ukraine, where delegates of 25 foreign countries and representatives of international organisations approved a joint statement on gathering further support for Ukraine. For the last year, a lot of attention was paid to increasing the resilience of the transport sector in the face of geopolitical challenges. Lithuania actively sought to develop cooperation between countries, improve interaction between different types of transport and increase road safety, speed up transport innovations, digital and other sustainable and innovative solutions in the fields of transport and logistics.
During Lithuania’s presidency, the ITF has expanded – Oman, Saudi Arabia and the Dominican Republic joined this international organisation.
The ITF Summit, known as “Transport Davos”, held annually in May in Leipzig is the largest international transport policy event, where transport ministers from various countries around the world discuss strategic issues together with business leaders, international organisations and representatives of the transport community.
Currently, this intergovernmental organisation consists of 69 member countries.
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