The 16th Africa Regional Assembly took place at UIC HQ in Paris on 10 December within the framework of the annual UIC General Assembly.

The meeting was presided over by Mr François Davenne, UIC DG, Mr Said Chandid, ONCF and representative of Mr Khlie, ONCF DG and President of the UIC Africa Region, as well as Mr Thierry Béra, UIC CFO and Africa Region Coordinator.

The assembly went through the 2019 Africa Context and Realisations as well as the 2020 Action Plan and Development Perspective.

The subjects for discussion included the importance of IRS, the main themes of the year 2019 including: 1st Rail Digital Summit in South Africa, Railway Security and Safety (Crisis Management) in Gabon, and three events in Morocco: 5th World Training Congress, 2nd HSR Symposium, Financing of Railway Rolling Stock and two annual training sessions attended by 50 participants from 11 countries.

The Assembly went through the events planned for 2020 including the two training sessions, HR in the Digital Era (CTFM) in Morocco, 2nd African Rail Digital Conference in Tunisia, Management and Organisation of Railway Networks in Ethiopia, and Level Crossing Risks in Algeria.

There was also a suggestion to organise the UIC Information Days for the Africa Region in Morocco to provide a deeper overview on UIC activities and strategies for the Africa region.