International Transport Workers’ Federation
The International Transport Workers’ Federation represents nearly five million working people in urban and inter-city road transport, railways and inland waterways, civil aviation and tourism, and ports and shipping. Its more than 800 affiliated unions are in 155 countries.
Public World has been working with ITF since the 1990s, when the federation and the World Bank Institute (then the Economic Development Institute of the World Bank) commissioned us to look into the comparative effects of railway privatisation and restructuring in two neighbouring west African countries, Côte d’Ivoire and Ghana. We produced education modules and a research report, which you can download here in English, French, German, Spanish and Swedish.
In 2003, ITF asked us to do similar research in Latin America, and you can also download our report of that study, in English, French, German, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish and Swedish.
More recently, in a project supported by the Friedrich Ebert Stiftung (FES), we have been helping ITF to build union capacities to respond more effectively to World Bank projects. This project has produced a range of written materials, such as Globalisation on Wheels, a critical exploration of World Bank transport policy.
We have now helped ITF set up an online Transport Toolkit, where many more materials produced in our work with ITF are now gathered together, and we have also taught on ITF Summer Schools and other education events in Argentina, Austria, Britain, India, Jordan, Netherlands and Sweden.
Beginning 2011, again with FES support, we are working with the ITF to promote the best models of urban public transport to fight climate change and provide high quality services.
