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Ahead of the 2020 West Africa TransFuture and Tech Summit (WA-tts®), Graham Olusanmi Lawal, Ceo, WA-tts has disclosed that the future of an efficient transport system in West Africa must be driven by technology and innovation; from smart ports connected through intelligent integrated rail systems which link high-density road networks that connect various airport runways.
The West Africa TransFuture & Technology is a new summit and first, of its kind that explores the future of Transportation and Technology in the road, rail, maritime and aviation transportation as catalysts to drive the rapid development and growth of individual states within the ECOWAS union and the region as a whole. The Summit will showcase future technologies at the heart of the mobility (r)evolution that will help transform transportation in West Africa and provide a convergence of multi-level regional government participation and public & private sector representation, with a view to sharing innovative ideas and nuanced approaches to solving the challenges of transportation in the region through the utilization of technology in this mobility evolution that is impacting the way people and goods move from one point to the other within the ECOWAS sub-region.
Speaking recently, Lawal stated that the objective of The West Africa TransFuture and Tech Summit WA-tts® is to contribute to the breakthrough of future transportation technology like e-mobility, robotics, and artificial intelligence etc. in West Africa; and serve as a platform to address and contribute to the need for integrated and ambitious actions across West Africa, to further advance the deployment of e-mobility through the coordination and joint financing of research, development, innovation and implementation activities.
He further stated that “Much of the requirement for efficient transportation network systems extend beyond the better provision of road infrastructure, although this is critically important – a carefully executed plan that incorporates modern technologies and futuristic tools in speeding up the movement of people, goods and services in a safe, secure and seamless manner across the ECOWAS sub-region and Africa at large is what is highly needed.”
He noted that the West African transport corridor is the least integrated in the world. More than ever before, there is a need for a modern and multimodal transport network to efficiently connect hubs of economic activity and areas of potential growth along its alignment. The African continent has the highest transport costs in the world, accounting for above 20% of the total imported price of goods within landlocked countries. This inefficient and expensive transportation restricts business activities, global competitiveness and intra-regional trade.
Africa’s trade with itself is low and declining in comparison with other regions: 11-15% of African trade is with itself and Africa’s contribution to global trade is only 2-3%. The root cause of this is not far-fetched, many of the transportation systems are obsolete, unintegrated and needing expansion and modernisation. The use of technology to solve these attendant challenges will also mark the achievement of a vision: a continent capable of growing and sustaining itself.
The West African transport corridor is the least integrated in the world. More than ever before, there is a need for a modern and multimodal transport network to efficiently connect hubs of economic activity and areas of potential growth along its alignment. The African continent has the highest transport costs in the world, accounting for above 20% of the total imported price of goods within landlocked countries. This inefficient and expensive transportation restricts business activities, global competitiveness and intra-regional trade.
“Understandably, trade is by its nature cross-border and potentially multimodal. With 92-97% of Africa’s international trade passing through ports, while 80% of intra-African trade takes place via road, being able to plan and incorporate multimodal chains, including rail, into transport hubs is an important factor in efficiency. To an even greater extent, is the recognition that a hub consists of operational systems as well as hard infrastructure”, he said.
He further admitted that, due to the dearth of summits/conferences that are private-sector led, that bring together ministerial heads, and the various arms and agencies of government in the ECOWAS sub-region in collaborative exchanges with solution and service providers, investors and other stakeholders to shape policy directions that proffer solutions to the myriad of challenges inherent in the regional transportation sector; there is now a real and present opportunity for a new summit to be born as a son of necessity to meet and address the needs, opportunities and challenges that abound within the regional transportation sector.
The summit will explore the entire gamut within the transportation and technology industry spectrum including emerging technologies in Fare Payment, Autonomous Vehicles, Security, Safety, Intelligent Transportation System Application, Artificial Intelligence, Internet of Things (IoT), Machine Learning and customer data information management to drive the mobility (r)evolution within the ECOWAS sub-region. The summit will also provide a focused perspective on the utilization of technology in this mobility (r)evolution that is impacting everything associated with transportation infrastructure and services, to help the industry rise up to the challenges of the ever-moving transportation landscape and an evolving public transportation industry, bringing together many of the leading local and international experts in the transportation and technology industry.
The WA-tts® summit which is scheduled for September 1-3, 2020 at the Eko Convention Centre, Eko Hotels and Suites, Ademola Adetokunbo, Victoria Island, Lagos, Nigeria; will be an outlier to what currently exists; in that it brings to fore the embracing of technology in its various forms and functions for meeting the present and future regional transportation requirements.
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