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Asia Pacific

Latin America

Country Focus:

Welcome to IFRTD Asia and Pacific Region

Who are our members in Asia and the Pacific?

The IFRTD Asia Pacific region includes NFGs in Bangladesh, Nepal, Pakistan, India (emerging) and Sri Lanka in South Asia; and Cambodia, Indonesia and the Philippines in South East Asia. The Department of Roads in Lao PDR and the Transport Development Strategic Institute (under the Ministry of Transport) in Vietnam both actively participate in network activities particularly through information sharing.

The regional network also has dynamic strategic partners in ILO ASIST AP, country and regional offices of Practical Action in Bangladesh, Nepal and Sri Lanka, Leonard Cheshire Disability South Asia Regional Office, Helvetas Nepal, Philippine Council of Cheshire Homes for the Disabled (PhilCOCHED), and Academic Institutions. The network also works very closely with the Asian Development Bank and UNESCAP.

Members of the NFRTD (Nepal’s NFG) with IFRTD’s Chairman, meeting Nepal’s Prime Minister

IFRTD has an active, strong and committed network in the Asia region, and our membership of individual members, National Forum Groups (NFGs) and Strategic Partner organisations continues to grow. In 2009 we extended our region to include countries in the Pacific region and our activities there are progressing slowly but steadily.

Our main activities are to lobby for better policies that will develop the economy and social aspects of rural communities through improved mobility and accessibility. Many NFGs are involved in the drafting of national transport policy documents and our strategic partners help us to provide evidence in these processes. Some of our members work at ground level, developing and implementing new concepts such as community-managed transport initiatives. Others, meanwhile, advocate for improved mobility and accessibility for vulnerable communities such as People with Disabilities, or those isolated by social status or difficult terrain.

Individual members of the AP Regional Network are from diverse disciplines such as gender, transport planning, engineering, sociology, economics, and more.. All of our members contribute voluntarily to the network, for example by participating in online discussions or contributing information that can be shared with our colleagues in the region and internationally. Some of our members are also available to be involved in consultancies as and when requested.

Ranjith de SilvaIf you are interested in access and mobility issues in the Asia and Pacific region then we encourage you to become a member of the IFRTD network and join us in our activities.

Ranjith de Silva
IFRTD Regional Coordinator (Asia and the Pacific)

Contact IFRTD Asia and Pacific
Email: ranjith.desilva@ifrtd.org
Tel: +94 (11) 2842 972
Fax: +94 (11) 2848 722
Address: 319/10, Ramanayaka Mawatha, Erawwala, Pannipitiya 10230, Sri Lanka.