Supply chain connectivity in a changing global economy
Panel Session
Transport connectivity is essential for global value chains. Better connectivity promotes regional integration, reduces trade costs and increases trade volumes, which stimulates economic growth, social integration, and development. This panel session will explore changes affecting global trade flows and discuss ways to improve global and regional connectivity in the face of these changes. It will specifically consider the role of policy makers in implementing solutions. The session will kick off with a short presentation of the ITF Global Freight Model, a tool to assess the evolution of freight flows, and its application for a recent joint ITF - OECD study of connectivity in Central Asia.
Key facts:
- World trade will grow at an annual rate of 3.5% in the coming years, slower than the close to 7% average annual growth since 1990.
- Trade in OECD countries will halve by 2060, but will more than double among non-OECD economies.
- Global trade patterns will shift geographically, reflecting converging regional incomes, changes in consumption patterns, and changes in productivity between regions. Asia and Africa will see substantial increases in trade.
Lead questions:
- How do changes in the global distribution of economic activity affect trade flows? What do these changes mean for international freight transport and logistics and supply chains? What are the implications for the environment?
- How do these changes manifest themselves in different regions? What are specific regional solutions and what should be the role of policymakers?
- How can new opportunities for data generation and sharing shape the transformation of logistics chains?
Background reading:
- ITF Transport Outlook 2019 (forthcoming)
- OECD Global Economic Outlook 2018
- Jean Chateau, Lionel Fontagné, Jean Fouré, Åsa Johansson, Eduardo Olaberría. Trade patterns in the 2060 world economy. OECD Journal: Economic Studies, OECD, 2015 (1), pp.67-100. Available on: https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01299777/document
- ITF Enhancing Connectivity and Freight in Central Asia 2019
Melinda Crane
Melinda Crane is Chief Political Correspondent at Deutsche Welle-TV and hosts the talk shows "Quadriga" and "People and Politics" She was Senior Producer of "Global Players" on CNBC. She has moderated a wide variety of podium discussions and conferences for public organisations and private sector clients. Among her areas of expertise are transatlantic politics; women, family education issues; climate and environment; business and economics; new media and the internet. Crane holds a Juris Doctorate from Harvard Law School and a Doctoral Degree in political economy from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy.
Christian Labrot
Mr. Christian Labrot is the President of the International Road Transport Union (IRU). He enjoys a distinguished career in transport, which started in 1979 at BWV, the German Association of Professional Transport Companies and Shippers. He was appointed Managing Director of BWV in 1990 and became Secretary General of the German Federation of Economics, Transport and Logistics in 1995. Mr Labrot has also served as a member of various IRU Commissions for many years, including: President of the IRU Liaison Committee for own-account transport and Vice-President of the Goods Transport Liaison Committee with the European Union. Mr Labrot studied Economics at the University of Bonn, Germany, specialising in transport economics, where he graduated in 1979. He also holds an MA in Economics.
Bruno Georges
Mr Georges, previously a member of the Belgian diplomatic corps, was until last August the Permanent Representative of the Kingdom of Belgium to the OSCE in Vienna. During his diplomatic career, Mr Georges has accumulated experience in embassies and at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs as well as at the Permanent Representation of the Kingdom of Belgium to the European Union. He is now looking forward to giving the benefit of his skills to the Central Commission for the Navigation of the Rhine.
Stephen Cotton
Stephen Cotton is General Secretary of the International Transport Workers’ Federation (ITF), a global union federation of 665 trade unions representing 18.5 million transport workers in 147 countries in the maritime, port, aviation, road, rail and urban transport sectors. He was elected at the 43rd ITF Congress in Sofia, Bulgaria in 2014.
Under his leadership, the ITF has transformed into a proactive campaigning organisation, allowing the ITF and its affiliates to secure industry-leading contracts and protocols with key multinational companies in the transport sector.
He is Chair of the Council of Global Unions (CGU), a Trustee of the ITF Seafarers’ Trust and serves on the United Seaman’s Service (USS) governing body. In 2014, Cotton received the USS Admiral of the Ocean Sea (AOTOS) Award, in recognition of his work defending the well-being and fair treatment of seafarers.
Sunandan Tiwari
Muneeza Alam
Muneeza is an Economist at the World Bank with over ten years of experience in the development field. She is particularly interested in issues relating to economic and social inclusion.