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OPENING STATEMENT
 OF
MR. KIM HAK-SU
UNDER-SECRETARY-GENERAL OF THE UNITED NATIONS
AND
EXECUTIVE SECRETARY
OF THE UNITED NATIONS ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL COMMISSION FOR ASIA
AND THE PACIFIC

Distinguished Delegates,
Ladies and Gentlemen,

It gives me great pleasure to welcome you all to this important Regional Meeting for Drafting the Intergovernmental Agreement on the Trans-Asian Railway Network.

Within the programme of UNESCAP, the transport sector constitutes an important area of work supporting the theme "managing globalization", one of three themes identified to better respond to the needs of our member countries.  Indeed, the availability of efficient transport linkages and services are essential if regional countries are to be more competitive in the global economy.  Not surprisingly, the development of transport infrastructure is high on the agenda of regional member countries who aspire to enhancing their international trade and socio-economic development.  This aspiration was echoed in April of this year by H.E. Kofi Annan, Secretary-General of the United Nations in his message to the 60^th Commission session when he stated that "People throughout Asia -- leaders, business people and ordinary citizens -- have long dreamt of an efficient and reliable transport system that would link their countries in webs of prosperity and exchange".

To assist member countries in turning this dream into reality, the secretariat has embarked on a bold initiative following the launching of the Asian Land Transport Infrastructure Development (ALTID) project by the 48^th Commission session in April 1992.  The three pillars of ALTID are the Trans-Asian Railway, the Asian Highway and Transport Facilitation.  Progress in all three areas has been regularly reviewed by the annual Commission and two Ministerial Conferences on Transport Infrastructure in New Delhi (1996) and Seoul (2001).

In the highway sector, a significant step was taken earlier this year in Shanghai when, at the 60^th session of the Commission, 26 member countries signed the Intergovernmental Agreement on the Asian Highway Network.  That Agreement lays a framework for coordinated development of international highways in Asia, as well as between Asia and Europe.

Distinguished Delegates,
Ladies and Gentlemen,

You have gathered here today to take another essential step mandated by the Commission at the same session, namely; to commence the process of drafting an agreement on the Trans-Asian Railway network.

After pioneering the industrial revolution in many countries in the 19^th and early 20^th centuries, and then seeing their existence threatened by stiff competition from other modes in the late 20^th century, railways now have a chance to re-establish their relevance in this era of trade liberalization and e-commerce.  Indeed, a number of features speak in favour of a greater utilization of rail transport in Asia.  Firstly, twelve of the 30 landlocked countries of the world are located on the Asian continent with the nearest ports often several thousands of kilometres away; secondly, the distances linking the main origin and destination, both domestically and internationally, are of a scale on which railways find their full economic justification; thirdly, the continuing surge in the volumes of goods and products being exchanged; and fourthly, the recognition of rail as an environmentally friendly and safe mode of transport.

While past efforts in railway development have been channeled through national action plans, the need to serve international trade, spurred on by globalization, necessitate a broader scheme.  Through the formulation of a Trans-Asian Railway Agreement, transport policy makers and railway managers of today and tomorrow will have a framework within which to agree a common vision, adopt a common development strategy and benchmark progress.

It is expected that following this meeting, the draft agreement will be further refined through 2005 for consideration by an intergovernmental meeting to be organized towards the end of 2005 with a view to adoption of the Agreement by the 62^nd session of the Commission in 2006.  Should we be successful in following this schedule, the Agreement could be opened for signature at the Asia-Pacific Ministerial Conference on Transport planned for November 2006.  In this respect, the negotiations that you will engage in during this Meeting and through the coming period will have important implications as their outcome should be nothing less than a solid basis for the definition of a regional approach to transport development.  Difficult as the task may seem, it is also a noble one whose success will benefit all.

This Meeting is the first region-wide gathering of railway managers and policy makers since the ALTID project was launched and, therefore, constitutes a new chapter in the history of the Trans-Asian Railway network.  Consequently, it provides an excellent opportunity for you to exchange views about institutional and technological innovations, as well as policy changes recently implemented in the railway sector.  I hope that the contacts that you make amongst yourselves today and tomorrow will deepen regional cooperation.

In closing, I would like to express my deep gratitude to all, government officials and representatives of various organizations, who have travelled to Bangkok for this occasion.  I would also like to take this opportunity to express my sincere appreciation to the Government of the Republic of Korea for its long-standing and invaluable support of UNESCAP's activities to develop the Trans-Asian Railway network.

I wish you all every success in your deliberations and a pleasant stay in Bangkok.

Thank you for your attention.