|
|
Global Newsletter November 2016
|
 |
|
|
Dear Friends and Supporters,
This month, international experts came together in Geneva at the 23rd UNRSC meeting to discuss the importance of increased support for road safety efforts around the world. The group also developed plans for the 4th United Nations Global Road Safety Week, which will take place 8-14 May, 2017, and will focus on managing speeding in communities worldwide.
We teamed up with FedEx and 1,700 students and teachers to celebrate International Walk to School Month in Ho Chi Minh City. In other parts of the country, we also hosted a teacher training and partnered up with a power company for road safety education event.
In Bangkok, our Thailand Country Manager and I attended the ceremony for the inaugural “Evonik Road Safety Award,” honoring the Thai government. The Embassy of Germany and Evonik Industries AG, an international Chemicals Company presented the award.
As the support for road safety efforts continues to grow in the international community, we are thankful for continued encouragement from allies like you.
Kind regards,
Mirjam Sidik
CEO, AIP Foundation
|
|
|
Photo of the Month – AIP Foundation staff visit leading hospital in Vietnam
26 October, 2016 – Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
|
AIP Foundation staff, including Molly Ellison, Communications and Development Coordinator, and Giang Nguyen, Program Coordinator, meet with Cho Ray Hospital staff, including Associate Professor Nguyen Van Khoi, Deputy Director of the hospital (center).
|
|
|
Our staff recently visited Cho Ray Hospital in Ho Chi Minh City, which was founded in 1900 and is the largest hospital in the city. During the visit, they met with doctors and nurses, and toured the emergency room and traumatic brain injury unit. The hospital sees about 2,600 patients per day, many of who are road crash victims. It serves patients from around the country, with 75% coming from other provinces.
|
|
|
Honoring road crash victims on the World Day of Remembrance
20 November, 2016
|
These empty seats – which are from the Phnom Penh Olympic Stadium – show the gravity of road crash fatalities in Cambodia.
|
Last year in Cambodia, 2,231 people died in road crashes. Worldwide, this number reaches 1.25 million annually – and, another 50 million are injured. Today, on the World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims, we honor those who have died and been injured, their loved ones, and the medical professionals who compassionately care for them.
“Some 90% of the world's road fatalities occur in low and middle-income countries. It is estimated that if emergency care systems for seriously injured patients in these countries could be brought up to the levels of high-performing nations, an estimated 500,000 lives could be saved each year,” United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said. “On this World Day of Remembrance, in honor of those killed and injured each year, let us take the necessary steps to make our roads safe for all.”
Read the Secretary-General’s full statement here.
|
|
|
United Nations Road Safety Collaboration members develop plans for upcoming Global Road Safety Week
17-18 November, 2016 – Geneva, Switzerland
|
Greig Craft, President of AIP Foundation, with Dr. David Sleet and Dr. Erin Sauber-Schatz of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
|
During the 23rd United Nations Road Safety Collaboration meeting, attendees discussed plans for the upcoming United Nations Global Road Safety Week, which will take place 8-14 May, 2017. It will focus on managing speeding in communities worldwide. Greig Craft, President and Founder of AIP Foundation, attended the meeting. He met with other road safety experts, including Dr. David Sleet and Dr. Erin Sauber-Schatz of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Road safety is included in two of the UN's Sustainable Development Goals and the global community is working toward cutting crash fatalities in half in the coming decade.
|
|
|
Related news: Zero road deaths and serious injuries (Report)
3 October, 2016
|
The Safe System approach promotes the idea that road crashes are preventable.
|
Source: International Transport Forum, 3 October, 2016
"Zero Road Deaths and Serious Injuries - Leading a Paradigm Shift in Road Safety" describes a paradigm shift in road safety policy, being led by a handful of countries, according to the principles of a Safe System. A Safe System is based on the premise that road crashes are both predictable and preventable, and that it is possible to move towards zero road deaths and serious injuries. This, however, requires a fundamental rethink of the governance and implementation of road safety policy.
Written by a group of international road safety experts, this report provides leaders in government, administrations, business and academia with emerging best practices and the starting point to chart their own journeys towards a Safe System.
Read the full report here.
|
|
|
International school students implement creative helmet safety campaigns in their community
16 November, 2016 – Ho Chi Minh City
|
Students host activities to raise road safety awareness among their peers
|
Secondary school students at the British International School of Ho Chi Minh City have been promoting helmet wearing in their community through a creative awareness campaign. In October, AIP Foundation staff discussed road safety with the students to help prepare them for their projects. Based on this information, the students have crafted campaigns and have conducted helmet observations, created awareness materials including videos and posters, and hosted an educational fair for a local primary school.
Read more about the campaigns and view more photos here.
Watch the student-produced videos here and here.
|
|
|
1,700 celebrate launch of pedestrian safety program at International Walk to School Month event
12 November, 2016 – Ho Chi Minh City
|
Students and special guests perform during a flash mob dance at the International Walk to School Month celebration in Ho Chi Minh City’s District 5.
|
More than 1,700 students, school staff, government stakeholders, and community leaders joined together to celebrate International Walk to School Month and the launch of the new 4-year plan for the
Walk This Way program, sponsored by FedEx Express. The Pedestrian Safety Gala was hosted at Hong Bang Secondary School in District 5 of Ho Chi Minh City. It was held in tandem with other events in more than 40 countries to highlight the importance of creating safe walking environments for all children. The celebration included pedestrian safety-themed games, puzzles, student performances, and a flash mob dance. Mr. Thang Dao, FedEx's Senior Manager of Indochina and Country Manager of Vietnam, attended the event. He was joined by other stakeholders, including government officials and celebrity ambassadors.
The new 4-year plan for
Walk This Way will focus on serving schools affected by the construction of the city's new Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) corridor, which is scheduled to commence in 2017. The BRT corridor will increase the number of pedestrians and non-motorized transport users in the area. AIP Foundation, operating as Safe Kids Vietnam, will replicate the pedestrian safety model developed and implemented in past years at project schools in District 9.
FedEx has worked with Safe Kids Vietnam to support the
Walk This Way campaign since December 2009.
Read the press release for the event here.
View more photos from the event here.
|
|
|
Nearly 90 teachers trained in road safety curriculum, helmet wearing techniques
7-12 November, 2016 – Hanoi
|
A teacher (left) demonstrates how to properly wear a motorcycle helmet.
|
As part of the
Helmets for Families program, supported by Abbott Laboratories, 87 teachers were trained on the proper way to wear a helmet and AIP Foundation's newly developed School Guidelines curriculum. AIP Foundation staff also discussed the results from the previous year of the program and its implementation strategy for this school year. The teachers, who work at Lien Ninh and Dong Quang primary schools in Hanoi, will mainly administer the road safety trainings to 1st grade students and their parents.
AIP Foundation has been working with Abbott Laboratories on
Helmets for Families since 2013. In the 2014-2015 school year, the program provided schools with 4,205 free helmets and parents with 4,203 subsidized helmets through an exchange program.
View more photos from the training here.
|
|
|
Power company teams up with secondary school for road safety education program
1 November, 2016 – Quang Ninh Province
|
Students participate in road safety-themed games during a “Values Day” celebration in Quang Ninh Province.
|
AES-VCM Mong Duong Power Company staff joined 600 secondary school students and teachers for a road safety education training program during the company's annual "Values Day" celebration. The company also donated 600 helmets to the students at Mong Duong Secondary School in Vietnam's Quang Ninh Province. Local government representatives, including those from the provincial Traffic Safety Committee, were also in attendance. The education program consisted of a presentation, followed by a question and answer session as well as interactive games.
The power company's annual "Values Day" event highlights its dedication to putting safety first, acting with integrity, honoring commitments, striving for excellence, and having fun. This year, the company focused on the theme of road safety.
View more photos from the event here.
|
|
|
Ford donates 20 bicycles to students in northern Vietnam
12 October, 2016 – Hai Duong Province
|
Trinh Van Ngan, Plant Manager of Ford Vietnam (center), presents the bicycles and helmets to students in Cam Giang District.
|
In partnership with AIP Foundation, Ford Vietnam donated 20 bicycles and helmets to students in Hai Duong Province. Trinh Van Ngan, the company's Plant Manager, presented the items to students from schools in Cam Giang and Nam Sach districts.
|
|
|
Related news: Breaking point – Southeast Asia’s road traffic nightmare
2 November, 2016 – Ho Chi Minh City
|
During rush hour in Ho Chi Minh City, traffic pours from the street onto the sidewalk.
|
Source: Asia Times, 2 November, 2016
In Vietnam, road infrastructure and traffic policing have not kept pace with the country’s growing economy and increasing number of vehicles – and the situation seems to be getting worse by the day.
In fact, the World Bank has warned that if the number of vehicles continues to increase with the roads system not being improved, traffic in the capital of Hanoi might come to a complete halt.
The price for this chaotic situation can also be counted in lives. Every year, thousands of people die in the traffic, known as Vietnam’s “hidden epidemic.” Many motorcyclists still don’t wear helmets and traffic education is low. Last year, more than 15,000 people died in traffic accidents, according to the Ministry of Health.
Read the full article here.
|
|
|
AIP Foundation team meets new USAID Cambodia Mission Director
23 November, 2016 – Phnom Penh
|
The AIP Foundation team in Cambodia, including Pagna Kim, Country Director (left), and Louise Goldman, Policy Change Implementation and Enforcement Advisor (right), with Polly Dunford, current Mission Director for USAID Cambodia (center).
|
At a recent meeting in Phnom Penh, representatives from AIP Foundation’s Cambodia team met the new Mission Director for USAID in the country, Polly Dunford. Pagna Kim, AIP Foundation’s Cambodia Country Director, and Louise Goldman, Policy Change Implementation and Enforcement Advisor, spoke with Dunford about the organization’s recent
Head Safe. Helmet On. program. The two-year helmet safety program was supported by USAID-Development Innovation Ventures.
|
|
|
Community comes together to paint road safety murals at primary school
19 November, 2016 – Siem Reap
|
Manulife employees and AIP Foundation staff paint murals that highlight the importance of helmet wearing.
|
Manulife employees and AIP Foundation staff painted road safety murals at Kessararam Primary School as part of the
Helmets for Families program. The paintings will be displayed at the school to teach students and their families about the importance of wearing helmets while riding on both bicycles and motorcycles. Manulife and AIP Foundation have been partnering on the program in Cambodia since 2012.
View more photos from the activity here.
|
|
|
More than 30 teachers unanimously commit to enforcing no-excuses helmet wearing policy among students
18 November, 2016 – Siem Reap Province
|
Teachers from Kessararam Primary School participate in a training session as part of the
Helmets for Families program.
|
During a teacher training session at Kessararam Primary School, 32 teachers unanimously committed to enforcing helmet wearing among their students no matter the situation. The event, which was held as part of the Manulife-supported
Helmets for Families program, provided these educators with vital knowledge on road safety and motorcycle helmet use. In the coming months, the teachers will provide this knowledge to their students and their students' families.
AIP Foundation and Manulife have been working together on the
Helmets for Families program in Cambodia since 2012.
|
|
|
Thai government honored at inaugural road safety awards hosted by German government, international chemicals company
16 November, 2016 – Bangkok
|
AIP Foundation CEO, Mirjam Sidik (right), and Thailand Country Manager, Oratai Junsuwanaruk (left), with the German Ambassador to Thailand, Peter Pruegel, at the inaugural Evonik Road Safety Award ceremony in Bangkok.
|
The Thai government's Department of Rural Roads was honored with the first annual "Evonik Road Safety Award," presented by Evonik Industries AG, an international chemicals company, and the Embassy of Germany, for enhancing road infrastructure in 3,000 school zones throughout the country. AIP Foundation CEO, Mirjam Sidik, and Thailand Country Manager, Oratai Junsuwanaruk, attended the event, which was held at the residence of the German Ambassador in Bangkok.
Peter Pruegel, German Ambassador; Dr. Florian Kirschner, Country Head of Evonik Thailand; and Jochen Henkels, Business Director of Evonik Road Marking, presented the award to the Department of Rural Roads for its "Increase Children's Safety - School Zones" project.
The "Evonik Road Safety Award" recognizes sustainable road safety initiatives around the world. The awardees were judged on their contributions to sustainability and road safety, coupled with how innovative and scalable their work is. The judging panel was made up of road safety, transportation, and urban design experts, including representatives from the International Road Federation in Geneva.
Read the full press release from Evonik here.
|
|
|
Thailand Country Manager discusses school-based programs at Rotary Club in Bangkok
9 November, 2016 – Bangkok
|
Thailand Country Manager, Oratai Junsuwanaruk (center), with members of the Rotary Club of Srapathum.
|
Thailand Country Manager, Oratai Junsuwanaruk, presented to the Rotary Club of Srapathum on the AIP Foundation's school-based education and awareness projects. She was also presented with a Certificate of Appreciation during the visit.
The Rotary Club of Srapathum is a chapter of Rotary International, an organization dedicated to supporting communities through service. It boasts 1.2 million members worldwide.
|
|
|
Helmets for Kids project profiled in Singapore Management University publication
October 31, 2016 – Singapore
|
Principal Tanongsak Haprom helps students put on their helmets at school.
|
"Catalyst Asia," a bi-annual magazine published by the Institute for Societal Leadership at Singapore Management University, profiled the principal of a
Helmets for Kids project school in Udon Thani Province. Tanongsak Haprom has made helmets a mandatory part of his students' uniforms. In April 2016, helmet wearing rates at half of the
Helmets for Kids program schools in the province reached 100%.
“There was resistance initially but we continued to engage both parents and students about the importance of helmet use and road safety. We try to use every opportunity – from classrooms to parent meetings, during school drop-offs and pick-ups, as well as daily road safety lessons during assembly, which is broadcast to nearby communities. This helped children and parents become more aware of the risks they’re taking when they are not wearing a helmet," he said.
Read the full article on pages 10-13 of "Catalyst Asia" here.
|
|
|
Thai government officials craft policy suggestions to improve speeding laws in communities
27 October, 2016 – Bangkok
|
Journalists interview Mr. Pisith Wongthianthana about speed limit law enforcement in Thailand at the brainstorming meeting.
|
Members of the
Legal Development Program (LDP) conducted a brainstorming meeting for Thai government officials that focused on developing ideas for new speeding legislation and enforcement efforts. The group discussed setting speed limits, installing signage, and developing punishments for violating laws. It also created a timeline and code of conduct for improving speeding law enforcement in the country.
Mr. Kamol Buranapong, Deputy Director-General of the Department of Land Transport and a
LDP member, chaired the meeting. He was joined by representatives from the Traffic Police Division of the Royal Thai Police, the Department of Highways, the Department of Rural Roads, Road Safety Group Thailand, and fellow program participants.
The
LDP is a partnership among AIP Foundation, the World Health Organization, and Bloomberg Philanthropies. It aims to build the capacities of its members to improve road safety laws in Thailand through the media and advocacy.
|
|
|
Traffic simulation corners installed at 23
Walk Wise project schools
1-16 November, 2016 – Kaizhou District, Chongqing Province
|
A traffic simulation corner at a
Walk Wise program school in Kai Zhou District.
|
Traffic simulation corners, warning signs, and mobile traffic lights were installed at 23
Walk Wise program schools in the Kaizhou District of China's Chongqing Province. The equipment will be used to teach students pedestrian safety skills so they can stay safe while walking around their communities. The installations are part of Phase 5 of
Walk Wise, which is supported by Chevron.
In China, pedestrians account for 26% of road user deaths. AIP Foundation and Chevron launched
Walk Wise in 2012 to combat this statistic. The program implements both school- and community-based projects to teach students and families life-saving pedestrian and road safety lessons.
|
|
|
