Dear Friends and Supporters,
As we wrapped up 2023, we were delighted to join with friends, new and old, at the United Nations Road Safety Collaboration Meeting in Geneva, Switzerland. One of the highlights of the two-day conference was the official launch of the Global Status Report on Road Safety 2023.
Road deaths have fallen slightly to 1.19 million annually - a 5% drop since 2010. More than half of all UN Member States, including low-income countries, report a decline in deaths. Ten of these countries managed to halve deaths in the last ten years. This shows that a 50% reduction in a decade is possible.
While the Global Status Report 2023 offers hope, road carnage remains an urgent crisis. Rethinking mobility to prioritize walking, cycling, and public transport is essential for people and the planet, tackling global climate, health, and inequity crises.
In this spirit, we were proud to host the first
Green and Equitable Mobility Conference in January 2024 in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. The objective of the
GEM Conference was to encourage new partnerships and capacity-building to advance equity and sustainability in the mobility and transportation sector. Participants and speakers shared how safe, equitable, and sustainable mobility can positively impact our daily lives and future with a focus on the importance of empowering youth.
In early 2024, we are also excited to share that for the first time, the
Safe School Zones Guide Vietnam was officially handed over to the Ministry of Transport (MOT) of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam by Atsani Ariobowo, Director of Child & Youth Health at FIA Foundation. The
SSZ Guide will be scaled up to build the evidence base to support legislation establishing a legal school zone definition in Vietnam.
The Government of Cambodia has designated road safety as a top priority for all of its citizens. Recently, the Ministry of Public Works and Transport issued guidelines to change the traffic sign, reducing the speed limit traffic sign in school zones from a maximum of 40 km/h to 30 km/h. 30km/h speed limits are at the forefront of the new Decade of Action for Road Safety 2021-2030 to achieve the Global Goals of Sustainable Development.
As part of the latest expansion of the helmet legacy program,
Helmets For Kids, a teacher training session took place in Bangkok, Thailand. The training aimed to promote community awareness of the life-saving importance of increasing child helmet use.
Looking towards 2024, we're filled with optimism for the exciting possibilities for positive change that lie ahead in the world of safe mobility. This year, let's continue to work together to make our communities safer, greener, cleaner, and more accessible for everyone.
Sincerely,
Mirjam Sidik
CEO, AIP Foundation
