Pursuing sustainable maritime connectivity.

 

Owing to its competitive edge in transporting high-volume cargo over long distances, maritime transport accounts for more than 80% of world merchandise trade by volume, representing a vital link to global economy for most if not all Asia-Pacific countries.

 
As highlighted in the theme study of the seventy-sixth session of the ESCAP Commission, entitled Changing Sails: Accelerating Regional Actions for Sustainable Oceans in Asia and the Pacific, there are still significant challenges in connecting the region to major shipping routes. Notably, Pacific small island developing States continue to display the lowest levels of maritime connectivity in the world.

At the same time, there is potential for Asia and the Pacific to lead the global transition to greater sustainability in maritime connectivity by enforcing global regulations and instruments and strengthening its regional cooperation. Accordingly, in its resolution 76/1 on strengthening cooperation to promote the conservation and sustainable use of the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development in Asia and the Pacific, adopted at its seventy-sixth session, the Commission called for systematic regional dialogue on sustainable maritime connectivity as part of its work on promoting sustainable transport connectivity in the region. The secretariat will organize that dialogue, mobilizing existing institutional platforms and leveraging partnerships with the International Maritime Organization (IMO) and the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD).
Regional cooperation will need to address the inclusiveness of maritime connectivity and support a transition to greater environmental sustainability in shipping. A key aspect of this work is to promote an integrated approach to sustainable shipping, in which port-oriented measures would complement the measures set out by IMO. At the present time, port development in the region is led by port authorities and terminal operators according to their individual capacities and priorities and the port’s stage of development. To steer port development in the direction of greater sustainability, the secretariat has compiled guidelines on global and regional best practices.

As is the case in other transport sectors, digitization and smart technologies are a centrepiece of current port and maritime development. The transition to smart ports, in which new technologies and digitization are used to rationalize and streamline port activities, has proven to be a viable strategy to address both economic efficiency and environmental performance. This is the case under normal circumstances and holds true in times of great disruption, as demonstrated by the ongoing national responses to the pandemic.


Even if, overall, maritime transport has continued to be operational despite pandemic-related disruptions, the crisis has once again underscored the challenge of resilience for ports, which are already highly exposed to disruptions linked to climate change and natural climatic events. With that in mind, the secretariat has launched two Asia-Pacific study projects, on supporting smart port development policies and on facilitating sustainable and resilient port development to support sustainable maritime connectivity. This work and related activities are being implemented in close cooperation with IMO and UNCTAD.