The World Road Congress celebrates connectivity and driving change for sustainability on the final day. His Excellency Dr Abdullah Belhaif Al Nuaimi, Minister of Infrastructure Development and Chairman of the Federal Authority for Land and Maritime Transport praises the impact of staging the event in the UAE. Closing ceremony sees the official handover to delegation from Czech Republic for the staging of the 27th edition in Prague.

Abu Dhabi, 10 October 2019: The need for driving change for sustainability, connected and automated vehicles and road safety were among the topics addressed during the fifth and final day of the 26th World Road Congress. Continuing the momentum of the previous four days of high-level discussions, hundreds of delegates including thought-leaders, engineers and academics gathered for the last day to reflect back on the success of the Congress as a major step was taken in reshaping the future of the roads sector worldwide. At Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre (ADNEC), eight sessions took place in the morning before the first Congress to be held in the Middle East was officially closed during a spectacular ceremony.

During the closing ceremony, His Excellency Dr Abdullah Belhaif Al Nuaimi, Minister of Infrastructure Development and Chairman of the Federal Authority for Land and Maritime Transport, expressed his gratitude to all the delegates that attended the World Road Congress. He outlined that the important discussions that took place during the week will contribute towards improving the way we travel in the future. He also explained how Abu Dhabi has brought together the rest of the world in line with the theme of the Congress.

He said: “We are honoured to have hosted the 26th World Road Congress which took place for the first time in the Middle East and we hope it will not be the last time.”

The closing ceremony also provided an opportunity to reflect back on the past five days of discussions and analyse what action needs to be taken ahead of the 27th edition in Prague. Claude Van Rooten, PIARC President took to the stage to introduce the World Road Association’s Strategic Plan for 2020-2023. He emphasised even more on importance of PIARC’s mission by discussing and sharing knowledge on roads and transport policies and practice and integrating a sustainable transport system.

He said: “Road administration, mobility, safety and sustainability and resilient infrastructure are the four strategic themes that PIARC will focus on during the next four years.”

Mansoor Salem Al Mehairi, Project Manager for the World Road Congress Abu Dhabi 2019 and Director – PR & Communication at DoT said the event was a significant experience for all attendees. He said: “We welcomed more than 3,000 delegates from 144 countries and 45 ministers to Abu Dhabi for this World Road Congress with over 400 formal speaking engagements and senior bilateral meetings taking place. “The delegates heard from seven keynote speakers who provided their insight and knowledge while we delved into discussions on various topics. “The Congress is about establishing facts and through networking, questioning and sharing expertise and on behalf of the organising team in Abu Dhabi, we believe that we have Connected Cultures and Enabled Economies”.

CZECH REPUBLIC INVITE EXPERTS TO 2023 WORLD ROAD CONGRESS A delegation from Czech Republic flew into Abu Dhabi and personally invited the delegates to the 27th World Road Congress which will be held in 2023 at Prague. The delegation, led by Tomas Cocek, Deputy Minister for Transport and Adam Scheinherr, Deputy Mayor of Prague revealed they are looking forward to hosting the event for the second time in its history after first staging the Congress in 1971.

A delegation from Canada also invited the audience to Winter Road Congress in 2022 in Calgary. They highlighted the nation will build on the success in the UAE and will provide another opportunity to engage on a series of important topics.

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