More should be done to implement the tenets of the Convention on International Transport of Goods Under Cover of TIR Carnets (TIR Convention), experts declared at the closing session of the Supply Chain and Procurement Convention in Riyadh today. TIR, which stands for Transports Internationaux Routiers, or International Road Transports, is a shortened acronym used worldwide to describe the Convention on International Transport of Goods Under Cover of TIR Carnets (more commonly known as the TIR Convention,) a multilateral treaty that was concluded at Geneva in 1975. The convention, organized for the first time by the Saudi Transport Ministry, saw the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia's joining of the multilateral treaty. Speakers praised the Kingdom's long-awaited joining of the treaty, saying that the move will greatly boost Saudi Arabia's commercial export and import capabilities. They called for expedited implementation of TIR regulations, starting with training centers to qualify officers who will be responsible for implementing TIR. The treaty aims to simplify and streamline the administrative formalities of international and cross-border road transport. In his opening speech at the convention, Saudi Transport Minister Nabil Al-Amoudi said that the Kingdom aims to leap to the 25th rank on the logistics performance index, from its current 48th position. Thanks to its strategic location, he added, the Kingdom is in the ideal place to become a global logistics hub. The government aims to boost non-petroleum exports to make up as much as 50 percent of the Kingdom's gross domestic product, from the mere 16 percent these exports contribute to the national economy today. --More 20:43 LOCAL TIME 17:43 GMT www.spa.gov.sa/1687829
