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Press
Release..............................
UNESCAP News Services
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Date 14
November 2003
Press Release No: G/17/2003
New Network for Transport and Logistics Education
and Research formed
Bangkok (UN Information Services) -- UNESCAP will
implement a project to form a network of centres of education,
training and research in transport planning and policy development
and logistics in the region. This new initiative ---the Asia-Pacific
Network for Transport and Logistics Education and Research (ANTLER)
----was taken at a regional meeting of experts from centres
of excellence in Bangkok on 10-12 November 2003.
"With the ongoing process of globalization
and the increasing level of urbanization, the demand for transportation
and logistics services are expected to continue to increase
in the future. This would further deteriorate the situation
unless we make efforts to meet the growing demand and rectify
measures to address the present deficiencies", says Mr.
Barry Cable, Chief of UNESCAP's Transport and Tourism Division.
Representatives of fifteen centres of education and training
institutes from 11 countries and five regional networks participated
in the Bangkok meeting. Participants at the meeting recognized
the need for capacity enhancement through mutual cooperation,
dissemination of information and development and exchange of
new training materials to promote sustainable development.
Prof. Peter Hills of Hong Kong University observed
that transport is not taught in acoherent way. He said most
programmes at universities deal with transport issues in a selective
way and do not present a coherent view about the nature of transport
problems and their solution. The meeting welcomed other institutions
and relevant organizations to join the network.
Member institutions from Bangladesh, India, Indonesia,
Malaysia and Philippines volunteered to share some of the agreed
activities to be undertaken by the Network over the next year
and decided to meet at a meeting in 2004 at New Delhi, India.
ANTLER was described by the participants of the regional meeting
as a "commendable effort by UNESCAP".
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