Other Activities
National Logistics Plan launched in Ecuador The physical connectivity of countries and the optimization of freight logistics are of major importance to the deepening of trade links, and to regional and global integration. Hence the importance of the recent International Seminar held in Quito, Ecuador, May 8 and 9, 2012. The activity, entitled the “Launch of the National Logistics Plan, Logistics Platforms, and Multimodal Integration,” was organized by the Ecuadorian Ministry for the Coordination of Production, Employment, and Competitiveness, and the Ecuadorian Ministry of Transport and Public Works, with the support of the Regional Freight Transport and Logistics Observatory of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB). The Seminar enabled local governments and key players in the private sector to acquire first-hand knowledge of the National Logistics System Plan (in its Infrastructure and Services components), and of the progress of the National Multimodal Mobility Plan. It also looked at international experiences of good practice in freight transport and logistics systems, as well as the public policy tools needed to implement it. This component of the activity set out to elucidate the factors critical for success in launching such a plan, providing the important institutions and players with up-to-date information on the management models applied in some countries in the region and around the world. The event was attended by participants belonging to several institutions from Ecuador’s public (central and regional) and private sectors, and having direct or indirect links to the event’s subject matter, and by regional and international experts, who brought their knowledge and expertise in freight logistics-related issues to the discussion. The activity mainly took the form of a public seminar that presented Ecuador’s National Plans and the various conceptual themes mentioned above. This space provided an explanation of the operation IDB uses to supply financing to the private sector, and there was a presentation of the Regional Freight Transport and Logistics Observatory, which the Bank is in the process of implementing. The event also included a closed session with a round table to discuss issues of especial relevance to Ecuador. With the participation of a group selected by the host country’s officials, including the experts who had given the presentations, representatives of the private sector, officials from IDB and from the region’s governments expert in logistics, the main conclusions of the event were reviewed, and there was a dialogue on the challenges encountered and the solutions used in other countries in the region to optimize freight logistics, an issue of undoubted importance for regional and global integration.
31 INTAL Monthly Newsletter N° 189 - May 2012 - All rights reserved