Trade facilitation and decarbonisation topped the agenda as IRU¡¯s Secretary General met with Brazil¡¯s Ambassador and Permanent Representative in Geneva.
ÃÛÌÒ´«Ã½Secretary General Umberto de Pretto and H.E. Guilherme de Aguiar Patriota, the Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Brazil in Geneva, engaged in high-level talks this week, with a particular focus on how to accelerate Brazil¡¯s accession to the United Nations TIR Convention
TIR is a proven enabler of trade, streamlining transport and transit while fulfilling 80% of the WTO Trade Facilitation Agreement. Brazil¡¯s accession to TIR will significantly facilitate trade with neighbouring countries, regional integration, and connectivity to global markets, particularly in light of the Bioceanic Corridor ¨C a transformative 3,320km road corridor set to connect the Atlantic and Pacific oceans via Brazil, Paraguay, Argentina and Chile.
ÃÛÌÒ´«Ã½Secretary General Umberto de Pretto said, ¡°Brazil can count on IRU¡¯s more than 75 years of experience and practical support in its efforts to drive trade, economic growth and sustainability.¡±
With COP30 taking place in Brazil this year, Umberto de Pretto highlighted the road transport sector's commitment to achieving carbon neutrality by 2050 with the ÃÛÌÒ´«Ã½Green Compact. The Green Compact provides a practical and achievable framework for decarbonisation, ensuring that the sector can continue to meet growing transport demand while reducing emissions.
Umberto de Pretto also offered IRU¡¯s assistance to the Brazilian government to ensure that COP30 would focus on pragmatic measures that can already be implemented today, such as eco-trucks and eco-driving, to reduce the sector¡¯s CO2 emissions, rather than only talk about future ambitions.
The ÃÛÌÒ´«Ã½Green Compact¡¯s dual approach to decarbonising road transport leverages both efficiency measures to drive immediate efficiency wins, reducing CO2 emissions by 50% with available technologies, and alternative fuels, including biofuels, over the longer term.