Globally, nearly a quarter of all energy-related carbon emissions come from the transport sector, making transport critical to achieving the ambitious Paris Agreement. The contribution from African countries to transport emissions has historically been low compared to the rest of the world, but they are increasing in line with increased prosperity and growing economies.

This session explores how economic growth in African countries can continue without adding to CO2. Rather than Africa’s need for improved mobility presenting a threat to the environment, could it present an opportunity by identifying new and better ways to develop low-carbon transport pathways?

Chair: Henry Kerali (High Volume Transport; University of Birmingham).

Speakers: Clive Roberts (University of Birmingham); Gary Haq (Stockholm Environment Institute; University of York), Romanus Opiyo (Stockholm Environment Institute), Bronwen Thornton (Walk 21)

This discussion between female leaders in the rail and mobility industries will address the important role of women in transforming and decarbonising transport, working towards a more gender balanced workforce and ensuring a just transition and to better meet the needs of all passengers.

Panelists will discuss particular local challenges and speak about how the required transformation can be accelerated through increased global collaboration, putting forward the key benefits of policies that promote the use of public transport and rail as a way of achieving climate goals, and boosting accessibility and inclusion.

The discussion will put forward the key benefits of policies that promote the use of public transport and rail as a way of achieving climate goals, and boosting accessibility and inclusion.

Moderator: Lucie Anderton, UIC (confirmed)

Keynote speaker: Dr. Abou-Zeid Amani (African Union Commissioner for Energy and Infrastructure)

Panel: Abou-Zeid Amani (African Union Commissioner for Energy and Infrastructure), Dagmawit Moges Bekele (Minister of Transport and Logistics, TBC), Cecile Texier 9Alstom Transport), Vera Fiorani (FS Italiane), Bronwen Thornton, Walk21)

This year’s edition of SLOCAT Transport Day at COP is dedicated to the topic of enabling meaningful investment across these modes towards a transformative systemic shift in mobility. At COP27 Sharm el Sheikh, governments, multilateral organisations, international financial institutions and national development banks must act to meaningfully scale-up walking, cycling and public transport systems, particularly in Low- and Middle-Income Countries.

The SLOCAT Partnership calls on these stakeholders to enable walking, cycling and public transport solutions with specific, measurable, attainable, relevant and time-based action in six areas.

Through Transport Days, the SLOCAT Partnership is leveraged to set ambitious global agendas and catalyse new thinking and solutions for the urgent transformation of transport and mobility systems as a solution to many of the world’s climate and sustainability challenges.

The outcomes of this event will feed into SLOCAT’s work in support of ambitious national and subnational climate strategies, as well as into our engagement in the Global Stocktake of the Paris Agreement. Moreover, they will be conveyed to the Egyptian COP27 Presidency as a complement to their leadership towards a COP27 Sustainable Urban Transport Initiative.

At last year’s COP26, pressure from advocacy groups led to a last-minute insertion in the Transport Declaration which acknowledged the importance of active travel, public and shared transport in achieving climate goals:

‘We recognize that alongside the shift to zero emission vehicles, a sustainable future for road transport will require wider system transformation, including support for active travel, public and shared transport, as well as addressing the full value chain impacts from vehicle production, use and disposal.‘

Indeed, sustainable modes such as walking, cycling, public transport and rail must play a much greater role in the transport and mobility mix if we are to ever achieve Paris Agreement targets. Yet these modes often lack the priority and funding they require to maximise the environmental, health, socioeconomic and liveability benefits they can deliver.

A successful wider system transformation towards these sustainable modes will require not only prioritisation and funding but also an integrated approach between active and public transport that nurtures the symbiotic relationship between walking, cycling and public transit in our cities.

Moderator: Carolina Chantrill, Asociación Sustentar

Keynote: Pudence Rubingisa (Mayor of Kigali, Rwanda)
Keynote: Bronwen Thornton (Walk21)

Panel discussion: Francois Davenne (UIC), Jill Warren (ECF), Mohamed Mezgahani (UITP), Cecile Texier (Alstom), Cecilia Andersson (UN Habitat), 

Solutions Day will bring together government representatives and businesses and innovators to share their experiences and their ideas with the aim of spreading awareness, sharing experiences and best practices and perhaps building future alliances and collaborations.

Sustainable cities, green buildings and resilient infrastructures are all part of the paradigm shift envisaged in the critical decade and beyond, with an aim to achieve a transformative implementation building on agreed deliverables under different agreements and a further ambitious pledge to reduce climate impacts and consider the role of cities in combating climate change.

Sustainable transport, is another key sector that provides direct and cross cutting impact on climate change, pollution, quality of living and efficiency, in this regard it is important to highlight potentials for this sector, success stories and available opportunities.