Asian road network will link 32 countries
April 23, 2004
By
Canadian Consulting Engineer
Countries in Asia are about to sign an agreement that will establish a 140,000-kilometre long network of roads acro...
Countries in Asia are about to sign an agreement that will establish a 140,000-kilometre long network of roads across the massive continent.
The Asian Highway Agreement is on the agenda at a United Nations meeting next week in Shanghai, where over 20 countries are expected to sign on. A total of 32 countries might eventually be involved.
The road network would link St. Petersburg to Singapore and Seoul to Istanbul.
The agreement is being handled by the UN Economic Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP).
ESCAP Executive Secretary Kim Hak-Su said earlier this month the highway network should improve communication and understanding between peoples separated by mountains, deserts, water and disparate cultures and political traditions — “The same way it has happened in Europe, because of their road and rail links,” Mr. Kim said, referring to the 1975 move by the UN Economic Commission for Europe (ECE) to establish a similar highway network.
ESCAP expects that landlocked countries such as Bhutan, Mongolia, Nepal and Uzbekistan will benefit most by gaining access to ports.
