The Asociación de Transportistas Internacionales (ATI) and the Gremial de Transporte Extraurbano de Pasajeros (GRETEXPA), affiliated members of the International Chamber of the Transport Industry (CIT), hosted the 38th Ordinary General Assembly of CIT on April 24th and 25th, which was attended by delegations from different countries of the International Transport Network (RTI-CCIT), as well as business people, representatives, and authorities from the public and private sectors of Guatemala.
This assembly had the participation and representation of 20 countries (Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Canada, Colombia, Costa Rica (R), El Salvador, Ecuador, the United States, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico (R), Mozambique (R), Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay (R), Peru, the Dominican Republic (R), Uruguay, and Venezuela). The assembly was broadcast live on both days on the YouTube channel of the CIT General Secretariat (@citsecretariageral341).
Following this, the General Secretariat of CIT, through its Executive Director, Mrs. Larissa Barreto, presented an executive summary of the Chamber’s activities since the last assembly held in Buenos Aires, Argentina, in November 2023. It is worth highlighting that the Council of Representatives unanimously approved the entry of new associates and affiliates, as follows: Solo Buses (Argentina), Movant Connetion (Argentina), Instituto Global ESG (Brazil), Estudio Jurídica Movilidad & Desarrollo S.A.S. (Colombia), Cámara Nacional Panama Cargo Transport (CANATRAPA) (Panama), and the National Association of Detrans (AND)).
On this occasion, those present were presented with the 1st UN Global Supply Chain Forum to be promoted by UNCTAD/UN with the Government of Barbados. The aforementioned forum will be held in the city of Bridgetown in Barbados from May 21 to 24, 2024, and the event will serve as a platform for knowledge exchange, collaboration, and the development of innovative strategies to optimize supply chain operations in a rapidly changing global business environment. More information can be found on the UNCTAD website: https://unctad.org/conference/global-supply-chain-forum-2024.
A letter entitled “Guatemala Letter” was also presented to those present and put to a vote by the CIT Council of Representatives, which aims to call on CIT Chapters to encourage companies and organizations in their countries to align their strategies and operations with the principles of ESG and also calls on governments to consider establishing, in their festive calendars, the date of April 8th as International ESG Day.
DAILY GRADE:
1. Gloria Verna Guillermo Lemus;
2. Carlos Adolfo Martínez Gularte;
3. Augusto Toledo Alvizures;
4. Alcides Adonay Rodríguez Mauricio;
5. Noe Juventino Lechuga Reyes;
6. Carlos Eduardo Lechuga Reyes; e
7. Luis Fernando Oscal.
CONSUL DEGREE
1. Werner Ovalle Ramírez.
AMBASSADORS DEGREE
1. José Daniel Ramírez Cabrera;
2. Otoniel Alfonso Dighero Castellanos; e 3. Paulo Gaba Junior.
The assembly took place in one of the rooms of the Tikal Futura Hotel in Guatemala City, where participants were able to watch and discuss important topics such as: the importance of participating in transport associations and guilds, reasons for company failures, the criminalization of transport of extra-urban passengers for the transfer of migrants in Guatemala, extortion in passenger transport in Guatemala, technology in ticket sales, the importance of transport in the development of tourism, distortion and asymmetry in the subsidy in transport services between neighboring countries, importance technology in cargo companies, education and safety on highways, sustainability and use of gas in transport, advances in technology in transport and executive courses in transport and management.
On the second day, the assembly began with a posthumous tribute to Don Julio Artemio Juarez Morán, who was an important figure in the transport sector in his country, Guatemala, and a supporter of the creation of CIT over 22 years ago.
The Family Business Forum was followed by beautiful and moving testimonies from companies in the transport sector, showing that with planning and conversation in the family, it is possible for traditions and businesses to be continued for several generations.
In the presentation by the Director of Passenger Transport of the Peru Chapter, Mr. Martín Ojeda Trujillo, there was an arduous and positive discussion regarding border problems between the countries of Ecuador, Colombia, Peru, and Bolivia, which resulted in the proposal of a motion to be presented to the General Secretariat of the CIT for consideration and subsequent presentation to the Chapters. Furthermore, the signing of a letter in support of Central American CIT chapters to governments regarding extortion in passenger transport in Guatemala was also discussed.
During the assembly, there were two important launches. The first was the International Transport Industry Integration and Connection Index, which aims to collect information on the CIT International Transport Network (RTI) and measure the profile of the sector’s community with the aim of adapting work strategies for members of the CIT as well as raising awareness about the relevant value that ties and the network have for the integration sought by the sector. To answer the short questionnaire, simply access the Google Forms link below: https://forms.gle/awRaTiPV8JQX7ZDN9
CIT and Movant Connection launch key index for the future of international transport
The second launch was the presentation of the Management Track course translated especially into Spanish, a course arising from the important partnership between CIT and SEST SENAT for the Digital Education project. The project has been operating since 2022, where 3 tracks (Management, Transport and Career) in the Portuguese language were made available to the Mozambican people. In the Guatemalan Assembly, Dr. Vinícius Ladeira, National Deputy Director Sest Senat launched the aforementioned course in Spanish and mentioned that “the alliance signed between SEST SENAT and CIT seeks to internationalize knowledge, with the clear objective of expanding and diversifying the educational opportunities around the world, as the project will offer qualifications in Spanish and English, in addition to Portuguese. Therefore, it is a source of great joy to start this project.” Interested parties can send an email to certificate@cit-international.org and register their intention to take the course, subsequently receiving contact with instructions.
The next ordinary general meeting will be in Georgia in the United States, in the city of Savannah, where the second most important port in the United States of America is located. Registration will soon be available in the Events tab on our website.
Finally, for the assemblies of next year 2025, the Canada and Colombia Chapters applied (Colombia pending approval). The 40th Ordinary General Assembly has been confirmed and will take place in Montreau, Canada, in June 2025. For more information, send an email to cit@cit-international.org and follow us on social media.
