Asian countries are collectively leading the global shift toward sustainable transport.

Department of Transportation (DOTr) Undersecretary Timothy John Batan said Asian countries have made “considerable progress” towards carbon neutrality and economic resilience.

Such progress includes curbing fossil fuel subsidies, constructing roads and rail expansion projects that comply with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and becoming the epicenter of the global electric vehicle revolution.

“These (achievements) position Asia at the forefront of the global shift towards sustainable transport,” Batan said.

To date, he said the Asia Pacific’s climate ambition has dramatically increased by 93 percent in 2024 in response to increased awareness about the climate crisis.

“May we turn these accomplishments as our driving force to do even better and make continual efforts towards realizing our collective visions for sustainable transport and climate ambition,” he said.

He called on Asia’s transport sector to remain vigilant and respond to roadblocks to achieving the SDGs.

“It is our responsibility to initiate change, and not just respond and react to change,” he said.

Batan was one of the speakers in the recently concluded high-level 16th Regional Environmentally Sustainable Transport Forum in Asia here from Tuesday to Thursday.

With the theme “Sustainable Urban Mobility Solutions - Empowering Cities towards Low Carbon Pathways for Achieving Co-benefits & Economic Resilience in the SDGs Era,” the forum featured plenary sessions on urban access, international partners' initiatives towards the Aichi 2030 Declaration and the United Nations Decade of Sustainable Transport.

PNA PHOTO