The European Court of Auditors (ECA) has published a briefing paper on the European Commission's proposal concerning the Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) for the 2021-2027 period.
In 2013, the European Union and Japan started negotiations on an Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA). Despite its name, the treaty is believed to create more than just new economic opportunities.
For us, it's been a long time coming. Almost a decade ago, little did we know that a successful cooperation with the World Economic Forum would evolve into a deep, analytical understanding of global megatrends.
Sea shipping is responsible for over 90% of world trade, and it's the most cost-effective mode of transport as well as the most energy-effcient way of moving large volumes of cargo worldwide.
The European Union's white paper on transport, published back in 2011, states, among others, that in order to reduce transport-related emission of CO2, particularly over longer 300+ km hauls, cargo traffic should switch to eco-friendlier modes, like barges traversing inland waterways.
The container became pretty much the staple of modern global supply chains, chiefly because its ship-trucktrain-port handiness has been standardized. Under whatever latitude we're doing business, it's nowadays shaped like a box.
Ports have always had a significant role in making sure that trade runs as smoothly as possible - be it globally, regionally, or locally. In Finland, for instance, nearly 90% of exports and 80% of imports are transported by sea.
We know that the global population will continue to grow at pace, with the United Nations and World Bank projections putting the global population at 8.6b by 2030. That's an additional one billion people in the next 12 years.
