On 12 January, Mr Renato Mazzoncini visited UIC for the first time as new UIC Chairman.

During that day, he met the Board of Directors in the company of UIC Director General Jean-Pierre Loubinoux.

Together, they discussed the current activities of the organisation as well as the priorities for the next two years.

During the New Year’s reception that evening, Renato Mazzoncini also met all the UIC staff as well as a series of external guests, among them several ambassadors based in Paris and key UIC stakeholders.

During his address he said:

I am very honoured to take over the UIC Chairmanship to further promote UIC values during the next two years and I will do my very best.

I am sure that reinforcing and streamlining our work on a common and agreed agenda will give us the opportunity to enable international railway cooperation, represent and promote the interests of rail transport worldwide and foster synergies between different bodies at Global and Regional level.

The UIC results are the combined effort of the UIC members and of UIC staff.
We are a big family of around 200 members from 100 countries. In my mandate, I would like to reinforce the communication between the UIC Regional Assemblies.
UIC is the worldwide house of railways and UIC staff has to continue to develop both the tools we need to share best practices as well as our network of experts. UIC members have joined UIC for the know-how they can get and share and for the problems we can solve together.

He particularly insisted on investments, cooperation with public transport associations as well as digitalisation.

The full speech of Renato Mazzoncini is available here:

http://uic.org/com/IMG/pdf/renato_mazzoncini_speech_uic_hq.pdf

In his speech, UIC Director General Jean-Pierre Loubinoux said:

It is always a great pleasure to see so many of you join us here at UIC headquarters, to share ideas, information, experience, or just like tonight, to simply share a good and cordial moment together.

But tonight’s reception is somewhat special. Beyond my very best wishes for this New Year, for yourselves, your relatives, and your projects, it is also a moment for us:

• To remember
• To thank
• To celebrate and
• To hope

First to remember 2016:

• With all its difficulties and challenges in a world becoming more and more complex and unstable.
• With all its actions and results in the various fields of Standardisation, Research, Innovation, Project Development, Digital Openings, Global Positioning and UN Recognition.

To thank all our members and partners for their collaboration and support.
We are honoured that many have come tonight, despite many coinciding receptions.

Also, all those among the UIC staff who have worked hard, every day, all year round, to deliver projects, reports, standards, and to organise in total 120 workshops, conferences and international meetings.

To celebrate four years of constructive and peaceful Russian presidency, after another four years of similarly efficient and harmonious Japanese presidency.
Demonstrating, I think, the climate of confidence and stability now prevailing in our association, around:

• its three values: Unity, Universality and Solidarity
• the three pillars of our philosophy: to open, to share and to connect
• and the three principles of our actions: Professionalism, Promotion and Productivity

This was obvious to all of us during the last General Assembly in Saint Petersburg, during which, among many topics on the agenda, a unanimous decision was taken for a smooth transition of governance.

Giving me now the opportunity tonight to congratulate, and thank for his presence, our new Chairman Renato Mazzoncini.

Finally, to hope that we will continue this year 2017, and the next one after, to be stronger than whatever would wish and try to divide us.

• That we will bring more added value to the Railway Community around the world.

• And allow me to hope that our members in need, in this very unstable world, suffering from conflict or crises, will have better times and can re-join our UIC family.