The second of a series of three roundtables organised by Climate Parliament in partnership with HVT took place on 14th March, aimed at providing Members of Parliament (MPs) with tangible strategies to advocate for cleaner mobility in their respective countries.
The Climate Parliament is an international network of legislators dedicated to preventing climate change and promoting renewable energy. 20 MPs from nine African and Asian countries joined the HVT session.
With a strong focus on climate finance and the role of parliamentarians, the session provided a progress report on the two specific HVT projects presented at the first roundtable.
Initial findings from the Transport Decarbonisation Index (TDI) and Access to Climate Finance for Transport were presented by HVT suppliers SLOCAT and the World Resources Institute (WRI) to the MPs from Bangladesh, Botswana, Egypt, The Gambia, Ghana, Malawi, Nepal, Nigeria, and South Africa. Both teams provided the legislators with actionable steps to promote cleaner transport in their countries and listened to their feedback, which will inform the next stages of their research.
SLOCAT is developing a structured tool that will help policymakers identify activities that could have a significant impact on transport decarbonisation in their own country, while comparing the progress with other countries. WRI’s Access to Climate Finance for Transport (ACF) project aims to identify which financial mechanisms can be used to increase access to finance for sustainable transport projects in low-income countries.
The SLOCAT and WRI researchers encouraged the MPs to promote national policies prioritising public transport, walking and cycling and to create a favourable legal framework to leverage private investment. They also highlighted the need for regulations that promote vehicle and fuel efficiency standards.
As part of the roundtable discussion, MPs from Bangladesh and Nepal presented examples of best practice from their countries in reducing transport pollution, which could be replicated elsewhere.
Bangladesh faces significant challenges due to its densely populated urban areas. The country managed to secure funding to build the metro (MRT) and bus rapid transit systems in the past year, making urban transportation smarter, cleaner and more efficient. In rural areas, there has been a shift towards electric vehicles (EVs), with approximately 2.5 to 3 million electric two and three-wheelers now in use.
Bangladesh has seen a decline in the reliance on compressed natural gas (CNG) vehicles, even though the country has large gas resources. The government has also introduced an electric vehicle policy to further reduce carbon emissions, setting strict standards for vehicle emissions and encouraging private sector investments in electric charging infrastructure.
Nepal has also taken proactive steps to address transport carbon emissions. One notable step includes the implementation of public transportation projects such as the Kathmandu metro, with support from the Green Climate Fund. The import of EVs has surpassed that of conventional light vehicles in the last fiscal year, demonstrating a growing interest and demand for electric transport solutions. The Nepal Electricity Authority has installed over 100 charging stations along key highways and cities, to facilitate the adoption of electric vehicles.