FIATA Headquarters' Session
2019 took off March 27-30 in Zurich, Switzerland.
“A great opportunity for FIATA Association
Members and Individual Members to exchange information and deliberate
on important policy issues of our industry,” FIATA President Babar
Badat told FlyingTypers.
“I am especially happy to announce
that the first digital courses of FIATA “Introduction to Global
Logistics Management, Theory and Practice” & “Maritime
Transport” as well as the digital “Train-the-Trainer Course
for FIATA Foundation Vocational Training” are also due to be launched.
“In the age of the knowledge economy,”
Mr. Badat declared,“in which training is treated as a necessary
raw material for economic activities, education is increasingly relevant.”
Undefeated Babar Badat
We like Babar. He stands up and gets things
done.
His business of course is forwarding, as Chairman
of Transhold Pvt Ltd., with offices across Pakistan. But he has also from
his base in Karachi lead and, is the guiding force for organized freight
fowarders moving swiftly into the future of Pakistan.
He is also undefeated and not afraid of risk.
Got Dumped By India
Last year when FIATA held their Annual World
Congress in New Delhi, affording India a breakthrough event in world transportation,
apparently some bureaucrats in that country got a hold of Babar’s
passport and pulled a fast one, refusing the FIATA President entry into
the country.
Now everyone knows that India and Pakistan
can be compared to the Hatfields and McCoys in the USA, where distant
cousins seem to be up against each other as a way of life.
For his part, despite the loss of what could
and should have been a great event with top executives of both India and
Pakistan together again for the first time on the stage, Babar simply
said:
“FIATA is a non governmental and non
political organization.
“I had supported the bid to hold the
Congress in Delhi and I was looking forward to my tenure's first Congress.
“What happened is sad, it didn't need
to be like this.
“Nevertheless our honorable Presidency
members, the honorable Extended Board members and heads of the various
groups were all present at the Congress.
“In discussion with the Presidency
I requested our people to kindly ensure that all the meetings including
those of the Regions, Institutes, Advisory Bodies and others went off
well and it turned out to be a good Congress for our worthy members and
for those who had taken out the time to attend the Congress.”
Need To Lead In Education
Back to the current issues at hand.
Babar Badat takes a bead on education saying:
“In an environment of increasing globalization
of markets and outsourcing of production and distribution activities,
associated with increasing level of specialization and customer service,
FIATA deems it necessary to provide the
international logistics industry with training foundations that increase
its competitiveness, incubate innovation and encourage the interest of
youth to work in the industry.”
Takes A Bite Out Of Crime
“The risk of cybercrime to the international
transport and logistics industry is increasing in conjunction with the
growing application of information technology,” Mr. Badat said.
“Customer-, price-, and transport-data
are increasingly being stored digitally today, which points to the significance
of enhancing digital infrastructures.
“The FIATA Advisory Body Legal Matters
is working on a best practice guideline on preventing cybercrime.
“This guideline aims at raising awareness
among FIATA members and the industry regarding the threats and risks of
cybercrime and to provide best practices in prevention of cybercrime from
a risk-management perspective,” Mr. Badat said.
Practices Guide For Container
Shipping
The FIATA Working Group Sea Transport has
published its Best Practices Guide For Container Shipping.
“FIATA Working Group Sea Transport
noticed that the quality of containers provided by shipping lines in global
container shipping has detriorated significantly.
“One has to come to the conclusion
that shipping lines are cutting cost in the maintenance of their equipment.”
Mr. Jens Roemer, Chairman of the Working
Group Sea Transport, and of the Multimodal Transport Institute of FIATA,
and one of the authors of this Best Practice said:
“The objective of FIATA is to recommend
“best practices” that should be considered by commercial partners
in their relations and dealings.
“We are convinced this will be a helpful
tool to the national associations and to the freight forwarders in their
daily business.”
On To South Africa
“From October 1-5, FIATA will have
the pleasure of hosting the FIATA World Congress 2019 together with the
South African Association of Freight Forwarders (SAAFF) in the splendid
city of Cape Town,” Babar Badat said.
“This event should be an opportunity
to further show to the world that Africa is a dynamic continent with positive
signals of economic growth, significant market potential and strong impulses
for its international outreach.
“South Africa, the country where the
great statesman Nelson Mandela was born, has made substantial economic
achievements since the 1990s. Cape Town is now an ideal place for the
trade and transport sector to build up networks and promote business.
“Under the overarching theme of “Where
Technology and Logistics Meet”, this FIATA World Congress 2019 wishes
to discover, in addition to many other topics, the development of disruptive
technologies, and their influence on our industry.
“FIATA hopes to bring together over
1,200 industry stakeholders and decision-makers to discuss the changes
in the logistics and freight forwarding industry, to share best practices
and to build business relationships with partners around the globe.
“Cape Town is blessed to have South
Africa’s top six tourist attractions within one hour drive of the
city center.
“Participants could take advantage
of this opportunity to experience the diversified city of Cape Town, enjoy
the landscape of Table Mountain and Cape of Good Hope, and most importantly,
experience the hospitality of Africa,” Babar Badat said.
More power to him!
Geoffrey, FIATA Fellow
More, click here.
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