26/06/2017 (Agence Europe) – During its general assembly on 22 June last, the European Barge Union (EBU) published its annual report for 2016/2017. It claimed that the potential contained in the inland waterway system transport continues to increase in Europe. The organisation identified several priority policies for the future. It is therefore advocating greater innovation to promote environmental friendly transport and to increasingly protect the environment that the river transport sector is currently using. The EBU also called for regular infrastructure maintenance, which it described as “an essential condition” for developing the river transport industry. The EBU also supports the draft directive on recognising professional qualifications in the inland river transport sector (see EUROPE 11665), which it said would also help resolve the problem of “professional labour shortages on some markets”. (LT)