SCO Member States support decarbonizing transport, promote digital transformation to achieve greater efficiency, sustainability
Apr 28, 2023
New Delhi [India], April 28 : All the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Member States on Friday supported the concept of cooperation among them to decarbonize transport, and promote digital transformation and innovative technologies to achieve greater efficiency and sustainability.
It was decided in the 10th Meeting of Transport Ministers of the Member States of SCO chaired by the Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari here in the national capital.
Chaired by India this year, SCO currently comprises eight Member States which are India, China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Pakistan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan.
In today's meeting, a statement from the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways said, "All the member states supported the Concept of cooperation of the SCO Member States to decarbonize transport, promote digital transformation and innovative technologies to achieve greater efficiency and sustainability".
A Special Working Group has been established to promote collaboration among member states of the SCO in transportation. This group will facilitate meetings to share knowledge and best practices related to reducing carbon emissions in transportation, promoting digital transformation, and implementing innovative technologies for more sustainable and efficient transport.
Speaking on the occasion Gadkari said, "Under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, India recently celebrated its 75th year of independence under the theme of Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav and entered the Amrit Kaal which translates into Golden Era".
"Under the Amrit Kaal, 'Green Growth' is identified as a key area for reducing the carbon intensity of the economy, including promotion of green mobility," he added.
Gadkari said, "To bring a paradigm shift by adopting green and clean fuels, developing technologies that improve the efficiency and reliability of the transport systems and bringing sustainability in the development of the road construction sector, the SCO Member States must collaborate for research and development and to bring innovations in the road transport to develop effective solutions to contemporary challenges in this sector."
The Union Minister said that we feel that an approach which is based on collaboration and cooperation between the SCO member countries will enable the promotion of sustainable transport development, lower carbon emissions to enhance the quality of life and improve the efficiency of transport systems within the SCO regions.
This is also reflected in India's commitment to achieve the target of net zero emissions by 2070 under the fivefold strategy called "Panchamrita" which was announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at COP26 in Glasgow in 2021.
Gadkari said, "As SCO Transport Ministers we can send a collective message affirming our determination to address the challenges of the transport sector and bring solutions that shall help us build an ecosystem for collaboration and cooperation as a part of fulfilling our commitment to the SCO."
India is the current chair of SCO, which is an intergovernmental organization founded in Shanghai on June 15, 2001.
