Announcement

The United Nations Road Safety Fund (UNRSF) has launched its 2023 Call for Concept Notes with an overall disbursement amount of US$ 4 million. The core priorities of this Call for Concept Notes are determined by UNRSF’s Global Framework Plan of Action for Road Safety  which reflects a holistic and inclusive system approach to addressing challenges in road safety and builds upon the proven success of the countries with the strongest records in road safety. Additional special priorities of this Call for Concept Notes are based on the Global Plan for the Decade of Action for Road Safety 2021-2030.

ESCAP is one of the Participating UN Organizations (PUNOs) eligible to submit the concept notes and apply for the fund. Interested eligible government entities from the ESCAP Member States and stakeholders who would like to submit a concept note for the fund through ESCAP are encouraged to refer to the 2023 Application Guidelines and 2023 Call for Project Concept Note Template.

The Participating Organization Engagement Strategy for the UN Road Safety Fund 2023 Call for Concept Notes is now available.

The deadline for submitting a Concept Note to the ESCAP Transport Division is 19 March 2023. For further details, please contact Mr. Ishtiaque Ahmed, ESCAP Transport Division at e-mail: [email protected].
 
Since the Fund’s establishment in 2018, ESCAP has successfully completed a road safety project in the Philippines. ESCAP is currently implementing two projects, one in the Lao People’s Democratic Republic and another in the Islamic Republic of Iran and is going to implement four more projects funded by the UNRSF.

BACKGROUND 

The digital environment is altering traditional understandings of how we trade, what we produce, and what we consume. Digital trade is broadly defined as trade enabled through growing digital connectivity. It is widely recognized that digital trade has great potential to help address the societal and environmental goals of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development when treated well. It can also hamper achieving those objectives when handled poorly.

In that context, the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP), together with collaborators including the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), the United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO), and the Asia-Pacific Research and Training Network on Trade (ARTNeT), launch this call for papers to collect contributions to better understand the impacts of digital trade and investment on Sustainable Development Goals and policy implications.

The contributions include empirical evidence, descriptive statistics, or case studies. It should draw clear policy conclusions from the research findings. The selected papers will be peer-reviewed by the advisory group to be published as part of the Asia-Pacific Trade and Investment Report (APTIR) on “Unleashing digital trade and investment for sustainable development” background paper series. Selected contributors will be invited to present in a virtual ARTNeT conference to be organized in late 2023 (date to be confirmed).

TOPICS

Theme 1 The role of digital trade and investment in sustainable development

Papers in theme one should contribute to addressing one of the following topics:

• The roles of digital trade and investment on sustainable development goals (SDGs).
• the trends and patterns in digital trade and investment in Asia and the Pacific,
• the implications of digital trade and investment trends on countries with special needs[1] in Asia and the Pacific

Theme 2 Digital policy trends affecting trade and investment in the Asia-Pacific

Papers in theme 2 contribute to addressing one of the following topics:

• Trends and patterns of digital policies in Asia-Pacific
• Implications of digital policies on trade in different goods and services both in traditional and digital sectors
• Potential impacts of other policies and regulations (beyond digital regulations) that can have a material impact on digital trade and investment.

Theme 3 Multilateral and Regional Cooperation Trends in Digital Trade and Investment

Papers in theme 3 contribute to addressing one of the following topics:

• The ongoing trends in multilateral and regional cooperation initiatives related to digital trade and investment.
• A comparative analysis of the coverage and the level of the bindingness of various regional cooperation initiatives in the Asia-Pacific region

Theme 4 Promoting sustainable and inclusive development through digital trade policy and digitally driven industrialization

Papers in theme 4 contribute to addressing one of the following topics:

• Good practices in trade policy, industrialization policy, or digital trade facilitation policy in selected Asia-Pacific countries
• Promoting sustainable and inclusive development of countries with special needs through digital trade and digitally-driven industrialization

Theme 5 Attracting digital FDI to cultivate a sustainable and inclusive digital economy.

Papers in theme 5 contribute to addressing one of the following topics:

• Making investing and attracting FDI in the digital economy more sustainable and inclusive.
• Good practices of policies related to MNCs and GVCs in the digital economy of developing Asia-Pacific countries

Theme 6 the impact of different trade and investment-related policy scenarios on sustainable and inclusive development  

Papers in theme 6 contribute to addressing one of the following topics:

• the impact of regulatory cooperation in different digital trade-related policy
• the effect of regulatory cooperation among different groups of economies
• the impact of investment in digital-trade/economy-related sectors.

FORMAT OF SUBMISSION 

Expression of interests / applications should be submitted in English, and should include the following:

1) contact information and resume of the authors

2) an extended abstract (300 words and up to 500 words) outlining:

 • structure of the paper

 • the main issues, hypotheses, arguments, references

 • country/regional focus,

 • data or case studies to be considered

The call for applications is open until 19 March 2023. Successful candidates will be notified on 31 March 2023and invited to submit a draft paper (5,000-8,000 words), due by 30 April 2023.

Please send your application via email to Ms Witada Anukoonwattaka at [email protected] with a copy to Ms Nucharat Tuntiwigit at [email protected] and Ms Natnicha Sutthivana at [email protected]

Notes:

1. Only selected candidate(s) would be contacted. If there is no feasible proposal, research on that topic will NOT be carried out.

2. Co-authorship is permitted.

EARLY CAREER RESEARCH AWARD 

Shortlisted young research contributors will be considered for an Early Career Researcher award. The award is intended for early career researchers who submit a highly-quality, original, and innovative paper. An eligible candidate for the award is the lead author of the paper selected and is a PhD student or a young researcher with at most five years of full-time research/academia work experience.

The award winner will receive the following:

• A certificate of achievement from the United Nations
• Invitation to apply for a modest consultancy contract at the United Nations ESCAP’s Division of Trade, Investment and Innovation will be presented to the lead author of the winning paper for work during a term that is mutually agreed upon between the United Nations ESCAP and the award winner. The contract will be issued in line with United Nations rules and regulations.

Notes:

• Only the award winner would be contacted. If there is no qualified paper, the award will NOT be carried out.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION:

Should you have any questions, please email Ms Witada Anukoonwattaka ([email protected]) with a copy to Ms Nucharat Tuntiwigit ([email protected]) and Ms Natnicha Sutthivana ([email protected]).

 [1] Countries with Special Needs include the Least Developed Countries (LDCs), Landlocked Developing Countries (LLDCs), and Small Islands Developing States (SIDs) that exclude Singapore.

Digitalization of trade procedures, especially through the application of emerging technologies, could contribute to trade cost reduction and efficient and inclusive trade-related processes. Despite the significant benefits it could bring,[1] paperless trade systems and applications face challenges, including interoperability and data security. Emerging technologies, such as distributed ledger technology/blockchain, Internet of Things, Artificial Intelligence and data analytics, has the potential to address some of these challenges.

In this context, the ESCAP Secretariat invites interested researchers and practitioners to make proposals to carry out studies on the implementation of cross-border electronic exchange of trade-related data via emerging technologies. The studies will also be used to enhance the template for feasibility studies to identify feasible trade data and data exchange mechanisms for initiating the cross-border electronic exchange.

Research Duration

1 April – 30 June 2023 (The first draft paper should be ready by 15 May)

Research Output

A research paper on the topic with the focus on:

• Feasibility of emerging (rather than technologies themselves, but on its practical application)
• Application of emerging technologies for digitalization of trade procedures
• Business to government (B2G) or government to government transactions (G2G) (not business to business (B2B))
• Must provide guidance and recommendations on the application of emerging technologies for cross-border electronic exchange of trade-related data, suitable for countries in the Asia-Pacific region

The research paper would be in the form of either:

1. Case studies or use cases of  implementation of cross-border electronic exchange of trade-related data and/or document via emerging technologies from developing countries in the Asia-Pacific region (LDCs are desirable):
   1. Description of the case, including scope and functionalities, institutional aspects, tehnological aspects, financial and human resource aspects, cost and benefits achiebed
   2. Critical barriers to implementation
   3. Comparison between traditional technologies versus emerging technologies (while defining critical areas for the comparison)
2. Overview of selected emerging technologies in the Asia-Pacific region, especially in LDCs – based on literature review
   1. Summary of emerging technologies application for digitalization of trade procedures
   2. Key barriers for application (especially those unique and common for LDCs)
   3. Comparison between traditional technologies versus emerging technologies (while defining critical areas for the comparison)

The paper would be 8,000-12,000 words, excluding tables, figures, references and appendices. Format and style for the research paper will be provided for the selected proposals. It should be free of grammatical and stylistic errors. Based on previous experience, it is expected the report will undergo several rounds of reviews, and the consultant should be ready to address feedback in a timely manner.

Benefits

Consultancy fees of up to 10,000 USD will be issued to carry out the research and deliver the paper – depending on the proposed scope, methodology, and researcher’s experience.

Other benefits for selected proposals:

• Presentation of research findings in ESCAP events on trade facilitation and cross-border paperless trade, where relevant
• Publication of the research paper in UN publications or through ESCAP regional networks, including ARTNeT and UNNExT, where relevant and suitable

Submission

Please apply as soon as possible or no later than 24 March 2023

Individual(s) with relevant expertise are invited to submit research proposals to Mr. Yann Duval, Chief of Trade Policy and Facilitation, ESCAP [email protected] with a copy to Ms. Soo Hyun Kim [email protected]

The submission should include:

1. An email expressing interest
2. In 500 words or less, a research proposal, including 1) a summary of the research, including scope, methodology, and detailed tentative outline of the paper, 2) research schedule/timeline, and 3) main expected outcome/finding/recommendation, and;
3. Curriculum Vitae (CV) and any other evidence of relevant work.

Selection criteria

The criteria used to evaluate the proposals will be based on the feasibility of the proposed research plan (75%), with heavy bearing on expected outcome/findings: and previous work experience of the applicant(s) in the areas related to the research topic (25%).

Notes:

1. Only selected candidate(s) would be contacted.
2. Considering the specialized nature of topics, successful proposals are expected to come from researchers who already have work/research experience.
3. Candidates are encouraged to make a proposal jointly with other researchers and practitioners to maximize synergy and complementarity of expertise.

For further information:

Please email Ms. Soo Hyun Kim at [email protected] should you have any questions.

The Transport and Communications Bulletin for Asia and the Pacific is a peer-reviewed journal published every year since 1950 by the Transport Division of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP).

ESCAP is calling for original research papers addressing low carbon transport. Papers are expected to advance knowledge and innovative concepts and offer policy recommendations on decarbonization and low carbon transport. Topics of interest for publication include, but are not limited, the following:

•    Addressing energy efficiency of transport operations, systems, vehicles, and vessels;
•    Low carbon transport pathways;
•    Use of renewable and alternate energy for transport activities, including green fuels for shipping;
•    Fuel economy standards; 
•    Energy and transport systems analysis;
•    Energy transition for low carbon transport;
•    Transport optimization;
•    Integrated systems analysis;
•    Transport network analysis;
•    Application of emerging technology and innovations in passenger and freight transport;
•    Transport demand and emissions scenarios and projections;
•    Transport demand, carbon emissions and energy use modeling and analysis;
•    Transport behavior modeling;
•    Addressing climate change mitigation and adaptation in the transport sector;
•    Regional cooperation, collaboration and partnerships on low carbon transport, and
•    Linkages between transport policies and Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs).

Papers can be qualitative or quantitative analytical studies, regional, country, city or location specific case studies, policy analysis, review, empirical analysis addressing low carbon transport, and directly or indirectly contributing towards the achievement of SDG 7 (energy efficiency in transport), SDG 9 (resilient and inclusive transport infrastructure), 11 (affordable, accessible and sustainable transport systems) and SDG 13 (climate change and transport). Submitted papers will be evaluated based on their analytical depth or novel perspectives. Only unpublished papers will be considered. All papers will be peer reviewed.

Interested authors are requested to send an abstract (no more than 200 words) to the Editor, Transport Division, ESCAP ([email protected]) and ([email protected]) not later than 1 March 2023. Following an internal review, authors will be asked to submit their full papers. Completed papers may not exceed 7,500 words and have to follow the format specified in the ESCAP “Guidelines for contributors” (to be provided later). The Bulletin will be published online in the last quarter of 2023.
 

Please see full article here and TICA FB link.

The United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific Subregional Office for East and North-East Asia together with the Greater Tumen Initiative (GTI) Secretariat and the Ministry of Transport of the Russian Federation (Country Chair of the 11th GTI Transport Board) jointly organized the 3rd ESCAP-GTI Seminar on Transport Issues in North-East Asia on 15 November 2022. 

Conducted on a hybrid format, the Seminar focused on the theme "Digitalization of Transport towards Resilient, Seamless and Sustainable Connectivity". The Seminar aimed to: inform on factors and developments influencing the acceleration of transport digitalization; share perspectives on transport digitalization among GTI member countries; and identify areas of possible projects and collaborations on innovative solutions in support of the GTI Regional Transport Strategy and Action Plan 2021-2024.

During the session presentations, experts highlighted that the recent crises accelerated digitalization in the transport sector. Emerging trends on smart transport systems as well as challenges and opportunities for digital transformation in the Asia-Pacific region were discussed.  Participants were informed of existing knowledge resources and tools to facilitate transport digitalization including AIIB’s Infratech Platform for technology-enabled infrastructure, RUT’s work on carbon footprint calculators, and ESCAP’s capacity building activities for accelerated rail digital transformation.

GTI member countries further shared insights on national developments related to transport digitalization. These include digital logistics and information sharing in China; developments on transport digitalization in Mongolia; digital transformation of Russian Railways; approaches and technologies for seamless cross-border transportation of goods by rail; and prospects of transport cooperation on digitalization in the Greater Eurasia. The outcomes of the Seminar were reported to transport officials during the 11th GTI Transport Board meeting held on 16 November 2022. 

The Seminar is one of the joint initiatives under the ESCAP-GTI Memorandum of Understanding, which was extended in August 2022 for the next five years until 2027. In line with the MOU, ESCAP and GTI committed to further strengthen cooperation in fostering seamless, efficient and resilient cross-border transport connectivity, and environmentally sustainable transport systems. The Seminar is held annually in conjunction with the GTI Transport Board meetings. For the Seminar in 2023, ESCAP ENEA Office will work closely with GTI Secretariat and China as the country chair of the 12th GTI Transport Board. 

Further information on the Seminar are available at:  
https://www.unescap.org/events/2022/3rd-escap-gti-seminar-transport-issues-north-east-asia

The United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific Subregional Office for East and North-East Asia, together with the Greater Tumen Initiative (GTI) Secretariat and the Ministry of Economy and Development of Mongolia, organized the First Annual Forum on Connectivity on 17 October 2022 in Ulaanbaatar. The Annual Forum is a side event to the 22nd Meeting of the GTI Consultative Commission scheduled to be held in December. Under the guidance of the Ministry of Economy and Development as the 2022 Consultative Commission country chair, the Forum focused on the theme “Framework for Agriculture Development and Food Security in the Greater Tumen Region”. 

Officials of GTI member countries (China, Mongolia, Republic of Korea, Russian Federation) attending various GTI sectoral bodies participated. GTI member countries shared national initiatives and policies addressing food security and agricultural development and identified opportunities for cooperation. Experts also shared developments and challenges on food security considering on-going crises and highlighted the key role of cross-sectoral linkages in addressing these challenges. 
 
The Annual Forum on Connectivity aims to provide a regular platform for sectoral bodies to engage on connectivity-related issues of common interests. The Forum is jointly organized by the country chair of the GTI Consultative Commission, GTI Secretariat and ESCAP East and North-East Asia Office and is a regular side event leading up to the yearly meeting of the GTI Consultative Commission. ESCAP through its East and North-East Office works in partnership with GTI to promote sustainable economic development through regional cooperation and integration in line with the ESCAP-GTI Memorandum of Understanding.
Further information of the Forum outcomes and presentations are available at: https://www.unescap.org/events/2022/1st-annual-forum-connectivity-side-event-22nd-meeting-gti-consultative-commission  

Further information on the Greater Tumen Initiative: http://www.tumenprogramme.org/

The United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific Subregional Office for East and North-East Asia and the Investment Research Center of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Mongolia jointly organized a technical consultation workshop on dry ports development on 18 October 2022 in Ulaanbaatar. Officials from government ministries and authorities in Mongolia involved on dry ports development participated, including from transport, customs, economic development, urban planning, and free economic zones. Representatives from logistics sector, freight forwarders and business associations also attended.      

For landlocked Mongolia, dry ports development is important in facilitating seamless connectivity and access to sea ports of China and the Russian Federation along the China-Mongolia-Russia Economic Corridor. Officials from China and the Russian Federation working on transport, customs and logistics also participated and provided updates on dry ports developments related to the trilateral partnership. 

Participants discussed the recommendations of the technical assessment study of Mongolia’s dry ports. Development agencies and partners also shared dry ports-related projects and studies. Representatives from other landlocked countries such as Kazakhstan shared their good practices on dry ports development. 

Dry ports development is one of the key areas of Mongolia’s New Economic Recovery Policy, which aims to create an enabling condition for the effective implementation of Mongolia’s Vision-2050. ESCAP’s support to countries on dry ports development is anchored on the Intergovernmental Agreement on Dry Ports and is in line with the priority areas of the work programme in East and North-East Asia on sustainable connectivity. 

Further information of the workshop outcomes and presentations are available at: https://www.unescap.org/events/2022/sustainable-connectivity-east-and-north-east-asia-technical-consultation-workshop-dry   

News release from Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Mongolia (Mongolian version): https://mfa.gov.mn/70930

The 8th Asia‐Pacific Urban Forum (APUF‐8) will take place in Suwon, Republic of Korea from 23 to 25 October 2023.

APUF‐8 will openly welcome governments, organizations, private sector, academic institutions, civil society and other stakeholders to engage in dialogues over the course of the Forum. The Forum is being planned to include a High-level ministerial session, thematic plenary and parallel sessions, side events and exhibitions to present, train, discuss and showcase on‐going work, and establish new partnerships and collaborations. Back‐to‐back associated events held before and after the Forum will inform and supplement the deliberations of the Forum. Technical site visits and best practice locations will be organized by the host city/government.

At APUF‐8, a flagship report to be jointly published by ESCAP, UN‐Habitat and other partners. The report will generally assess the status of urbanization across the region and will provide guidance on strategies to achieve sustainable urbanization, supported by reliable data and evidence on trends in urban population, infrastructure and systems, natural environment, and social equality.

The burning of crop residue is one of the important causes of severe seasonal air pollution in many countries of South Asia. It affects people's health, contributes to climate change with the emission of Greenhouse Gases and affects agricultural production and food security by deteriorating soil health. To highlight the issue and explore opportunities for cooperation, the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) convened a hybrid meeting titled ‘Crop Residue Management in South Asia - Advancing Subregional Cooperation for Sustainable, Climate-smart and Integrated Management of Crop Residues’ on 15 September 2022. This meeting was jointly organized by ESCAP’s Subregional Office for South and South-West Asia (ESCAP-SSWA) and the Centre for Sustainable Agricultural Mechanization (ESCAP-CSAM).

Presentations were made on the findings of national studies conducted for Bangladesh, India, Nepal and Pakistan, which especially highlighted the status of crop residue management, good practices/technologies of straw management (with particular emphasis on mechanization-based solutions), and proposed action plans for interventions at the national level. A draft subregional report developed to explore key actions and the possibility of having a subregional framework for cooperation to promote sustainable and integrated management of straw residues in South Asia was also presented. 

The presentations were followed by a panel discussion of experts from national/government research institutions, universities, other United Nations entities and non-profit organizations from South-Asia as well as other regions who deliberated upon the findings of the national and subregional reports. While underscoring the need for a subregional cooperation framework for tackling the issue of straw burning, they emphasized the importance of undertaking further analytical work and data collection, making sustainable straw management economically attractive for farmers, enabling knowledge sharing and capacity building, and providing adequate policy support, among other areas. 

Overall, the meeting enabled a vibrant and multi-stakeholder dialogue on the pressing need for improved crop residue management and how subregional cooperation can further this goal. Close to 100 participants from the Asia-Pacific as well as other regions attended the event.

For more information, recording, and the full programme:

https://www.unescap.org/events/2022/advancing-subregional-cooperation-sustainable-climate-smart-and-integrated-management