Airship technology for air connectivity and humanitarian aid in the Caribbean and the Pacific
The Hybrid Airship transport alternative has the potential to be a game changing technology with significant development in recent years. The aim of this technical note is to help raise awareness on airships as an innovative mobile services technology.
Implications of the COVID-19 pandemic for commercial contracts covering the transportation of goods in the Asia-Pacific region and beyond
With a view to increase awareness of Government officials and transport operators in Asia and the Pacific region on the ways of addressing some of the key legal implications of COVID-19 for commercial contracts covering transport of goods and to assist shippers and consignees, particularly in developing countries in addressing some of the key commercial law implications of the COVID-19 crisis, the UNESCAP secretariat conducted research and preliminary analysis of the challenges arising from the COVID-19 crisis affecting international commercial contracts, including contracts on international carriage of goods by various modes of transport, focusing particularly on land and multimodal transport.
Proposals for crisis-response provisions in regional and bilateral transport agreements of the ESCAP member States
Having faced the pandemic, most of ESCAP member States had to urgently issue ad-hoc policies and domestic regulations in attempts to prevent or limit the spread of COVID-19 disease through their borders, often without warning or consulting their counterparts and in breach of the rules of transport-related international legal instruments. This situation showcased that existing legal instruments covering international carriage of goods and passengers may lack provisions on cooperation while dealing with critical situations such as the current crisis or other potential extraordinary situations.
In this context, the UNESCAP secretariat took stock of the current bilateral and multilateral agreements on international road transport in Asia and the Pacific Region, analyzing, in particular, the availability of clauses related to crisis response and mutual assistance in emergency situations in those agreements. of information and may be subsequently updated.
Road freight in ASEAN: New COVID-19 Response and Recovery Guidelines
The Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN) Member States will have new tools to help them address issues related to road freight transport caused by the COVID-19 pandemic as part of the initiatives under the ASEAN Comprehensive Recovery Framework. ASEAN has approved guidelines to support the response and recovery of road freight transport among its Member States in the context of the pandemic.
Developed with the assistance of the International Transport Forum (ITF) and the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP), the COVID-19 Recovery Guidelines for Resilient and Sustainable International Road Freight Transport Connectivity in ASEAN were approved ad-referendum by the ASEAN Senior Transport Officials Meeting (STOM) on 11 January 2021.
Regional cooperation for trade and transport connectivity in the age of pandemics in Asia and the Pacific
“Coordination, digitalization, harmonization and partnership” could remain as guiding principles of the trade and transport response during the pandemic and in its aftermath. The existing cooperation mechanisms for trade and transport connectivity in Asia and the Pacific should be mobilized to provide stronger momentum for facilitation, harmonization and digitalization of cross-border trade and transport procedures. This includes the Framework Agreement on Facilitation of Cross-Border Paperless Trade in Asia and the Pacific, and the intergovernmental agreements on the Asian Highway and the Trans-Asian Railway Networks. Complementing this, regional coordination in times of crises can also be institutionalized in future negotiations of relevant regional, subregional and bilateral trade and transport agreements.