"Sustainable Cities through Transport Conference" - Addis Ababa - August 2023

In many African countries, investments in road infrastructure have grown rapidly in a bid to support the growth of cities. Meanwhile, investments in sustainable transport have lagged even though pedestrians, cyclists, and public transport users comprise the majority in most cities.

The introduction of highway-oriented road designs has led to high rates of fatalities from crashes and diminished neighbourhood permeability. As a result, walking and cycling levels have been on the decline, as active trips are replaced by motorised modes. Public transport is often inefficient, with buses and minibuses stuck in traffic. Vehicle maintenance is poor and crews work without adequate labour standards.

The lack of quality public transport further contributes to the image of the private car as a status symbol. Overall, the lack of people-centred planning has contributed to increasingly expensive commutes, high fuel costs, worsening traffic, and poor air quality.

To address challenges and opportunities in implementing sustainable transport in African cit-ies, the AfDB, through its UMDF and other development partners organised a conference under the theme "Sustainable Cities through Transport: Improving Financing Mechanisms and Institutional Capacity".

The conference, held from 9–10 August 2023 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, brought together approximately 75 experts from eleven African countries: Burundi, Ethiopia, Djibouti, Ghana, Guinea, Kenya, Mozambique, Nigeria, Rwanda, Tanzania, and Uganda.

A significant focus of the conference was the role of planning and implementing adequate infrastructure for safe and inclusive public transport. Agencies have been invited in reflecting about new approaches, including in public-private partnerships and local revenue generation through land value capture and green bonds to buffer existing economic conditions.

During the two-day conference, participants had an opportunity to visit different mobility pro-jects in Addis Ababa, including the Sheger Riverside redevelopment project, a greenway along the rivers, which part of the preparatory studies have beenfinanced by the UMDF.

The last session involved different delegates outlining key projects that could be taken for-ward with technical and financial support from the partners.

The conference has been organised in partnership with the Institute for Transportation and Development Policy (ITDP), International Climate Initiative (IKI), the African Development Bank (AfDB), the Urban and Municipal Development Fund (UMDF), United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat), Children’s Investment Fund Foundation (CIFF), UN Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA), UN Environment Programme, and United Na-tions Road Safety Fund.