Photo: Jose-Viegas-Simon-Bridges-and-Mohamed-Najob-Boulif-570×380
Argentina, Israel and Morocco join International Transport Forum
02 June 2015
by Richard Forster
Argentina, Israel and Morocco have become the latest members of the International Transport Forum (ITF). The organisation’s Council of Ministers of Transport unanimously agreed to the accession of the three countries at the ITF Summit in Leipzig, Germany.
“The International Transport Forum is the global, all-modes transport organisation,” said José Viegas, ITF Secretary-General. “These three new members make the ITF even more global, and they bring significant transport experience to the table. We will be working with the governments of Argentina, Israel and Morocco to ensure that they get value for their policy making out of their membership.”
Morocco is the ITF’s first full member on the African continent, having previously been an observer country since the creation of organisation in 2006.
“Morocco’s accession will be a plus for the Forum. It is also a positive development for Morocco,” said Mohamed Najib Boulif, Morocco’s Deputy Minister of Transport. “The geostrategic position of Morocco in the Mediterranean, Africa, and the MENA region, are all strategic assets for Morocco’s participation.”
Israel joins the ITF after becoming a member of the Organisation of Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) in 2010. “Israel is keen to contribute to the work of the ITF, and to be inspired by it,” said Moshe Kamhi, Director of Economic International Organisations in Israel’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Argentina is the second International Transport Forum member country from South America, following the accession of Chile in 2012. Argentina has been actively involved with the ITF’s permanent working group on road safety (IRTAD) since 2009 and has been a leading force in establishing the Ibero-American Road Safety Observatory (OISEVI), for which IRTAD operates a Spanish-language database with road crash information.
“New Zealand welcomes Morocco, Argentina and Israel to the International Transport Forum,” said Simon Bridges, Minister of Transport for New Zealand, the 2015 ITF presidency country. “The expanded membership of the ITF promises the opportunity to promote an increasingly global outlook for the work of the organisation.”
