Strengthening Member and Partner Engagement Across Southeast Asia with our Sec Gen Mohamed Mezghani
As cities across Southeast Asia accelerate investments in sustainable mobility, UITP Secretary General Mohamed Mezghani reinforced UITP’s commitment to its members and partners through a recent strategic visit to Thailand and the Philippines.
The mission reflected UITP’s growing engagement across the Asia-Pacific region and highlighted our member-centric approach – one that places dialogue and long-term partnership development at the heart of our global activities.
Throughout the visit, Mohamed met with transport authorities, operators, and mobility innovators to better understand local priorities while identifying opportunities for collaboration, training, and knowledge exchange.
From rail expansion and electric bus deployment to integrated ticketing and institutional capacity building, the discussions demonstrated the shared ambition to create more connected sustainable urban mobility systems – the trip had it all! Let’s take a closer, strategic look…
Strengthening Engagement in the Philippines
The UITP delegation – featuring UITP Asia-Pacific’s Shaun Tan, Poornima Singh and Yuhan Xiao – engaged in Manila with key stakeholders from the country’s rapidly evolving transport sector during the Asian Development Bank (ADB) Asia and Pacific Transport Forum 2026.
A key meeting was held with the Philippines’ Department of Transportation (DOTr), including Railway Division Assistant Secretary Eduardo Danilo Macabulos. Discussions focused on the country’s major public transport developments, including the Metro Manila Subway Project, MRT Line 7, the North-South Commuter Railway, LRT-2 developments, and the Davao Public Transport Modernisation Project.
UITP reaffirmed its commitment to supporting the Philippines through technical cooperation, capacity building, and knowledge exchange initiatives.
The UITP team also visited Victory Liner, one of the Philippines’ most established provincial bus operators, to discuss the evolving role of bus operators in sustainability and electrification. Operating more than 1,000 inter-city buses across Luzon, the company is actively exploring fleet modernisation and electric mobility solutions, including electric bus operations between Quezon City and San Fernando.
Discussions explored opportunities for greater engagement with UITP Asia-Pacific activities, including participation in regional bus platforms, training programmes, and peer-learning initiatives with operators from across Asia.
Advancing Regional Collaboration in Thailand
Mohamed and the UITP Asia-Pacific team also visited Bangkok to engage with UITP members and mobility stakeholders from Thailand’s public transport ecosystem.
Experiencing the city’s mobility network firsthand – including metro systems, suburban rail, electric buses, ferries, and electric tuk-tuks – provided valuable insights into Bangkok’s ongoing transport transformation and multimodal integration efforts.
Our delegation met with major transport stakeholders including BTS Group Holdings, Bangkok Expressway and Metro Public Company Limited (BEM), Thai Smile Bus, the Department of Rail Transport (DRT), and mobility platform provider MuvMi.
Across these exchanges, several common priorities emerged: improving integration between transport modes, expanding digital ticketing and passenger experience solutions and accelerating electric mobility deployment.
The visit also highlighted the lasting impact of UITP’s regional training and knowledge-sharing programmes. Many senior leaders within Thailand’s transport sector have participated in earlier UITP training initiatives, reinforcing the organisation’s role in supporting long-term professional development across the region.
Advancing Sustainable Mobility With Partnerships
The visits to Bangkok and Manila underscored the strategic importance of Southeast Asia in the global mobility transition.
UITP is an international, member-led association and both cities are investing heavily in expanding rail networks, modernising bus fleets, and creating more integrated transport ecosystems to address congestion, improve accessibility, and enhance quality of life for millions of residents.
For UITP, these engagements reaffirm the importance of maintaining close relationships with members and stakeholders on the ground – ensuring that global expertise can be translated into practical local solutions.
As cities across Asia-Pacific continue to evolve, UITP remains committed to supporting our members – existing and new – through knowledge sharing and global collaboration to help transform sustainable urban mobility for the future.
And with that, on to the next stop!
