After the epidemic, the rebound! That's how I would like to describe what we are experiencing daily in our countries, and in the day-to-day life of PIARC. 

First of all, we are seeing a rebound in mobility, and of course we have mixed feelings about this. Indeed, in the name of climate change, we must limit our desire for "ever more" mobility in high-income countries. You only have to listen to the representatives of African low- and middle- income countries at seminars to understand all the health and solidarity issues that underlie their mobility needs.

We can also speak of a rebound in the increasing number of initiatives by governments and local authorities to decarbonise transport, with policies in favour of electric vehicles, for example, as well as the many local initiatives in favour of active modes of transport or car-sharing.

Since the start of 2023, our experts have been keen to meet up and discuss this profusion of initiatives, and to enrich the work of PIARC's Technical Committees by organising seminars in conjunction with road organisations in many countries. In fact, 4 seminars were organised for the Strategic Theme on mobility alone, including those of Committee 2.4 "Road Network Operations / ITS" in Morocco, Committee 2.2 "Accessibility and Mobility in Rural Areas" in Tunisia, Committee 2.1 "Mobility in Urban Areas" in Argentina, and Committee 2.3 "Freight Transport" in Tanzania.

All this momentum is reflected in PIARC's work and in the reports that are pouring in ahead of the World Road Congress to be held in Prague in October 2023. The PIARC community is coming together and revitalising itself: let's put this rebound at the service of the challenges facing our societies!