ΝΕΑ από την Global Alliance NGOs for Road Safety

 

Action and accountability for safer roads With six months to go until the 4th Global Ministerial Conference on Road Safety (Ministerial Conference) in Morocco, NGOs are gearing up to leverage this opportunity for advocacy and accountability. The Alliance’s Call to Action sets out three key demands to achieve the 2030 road safety targets: implement interventions that have been proven to reduce road deaths and injuries, transparent and accountable funding to make mobility safe, and involvement of NGOs—who are the eyes, ears, and voices of communities—in decision making. The Ministerial Conference is a milestone to galvanize governments into evidence-based action and investment. NGOs are already pushing for SMART commitments through their day-to-day advocacy, many of them using the #CommitToAct Mobility Snapshots. The Ministerial Conference can spur on stronger, further reaching ones. Crucially, when the conference finishes and Ministers return to their countries, NGOs are there, equipped with the Accountability Toolkit, to remind them of the commitments they have made and to keep them accountable for resourcing and implementing them.  These next months in the run up to the Ministerial Conference are important. Find out below how you can play your part. What happens during and afterwards is life-or-death for 1.19 million people a year. Alliance members at the Third Global Ministerial Conference on Road Safety in Stockholm  Mobilizing for the Ministerial Conference In the coming weeks, invitations will be sent to Ministers to attend the Ministerial Conference in February 2025. The theme for the conference is “One world, one road: commit to life” and underscores the urgent need for meaningful commitment toward halving global road deaths by 2030. NGOs can start by ensuring that the right decision makers attend the Ministerial Conference and encouraging them to bring concrete commitments. Tools like the Mobility Snapshots and Accountability Toolkit can support advocacy to show the realities of people’s dangerous journeys and how to make them safer. At the conference, NGOs can help keep those realities visible, especially if they can attend as part of their government's official delegation. After the conference, NGOs role continues, they must ensure accountability by tracking that commitments are implemented. The Alliance will work alongside NGOs to ensure a strong civil society voice before, during, and after the Ministerial Conference. Join our first information session on Tuesday 17 September at 14:00 CET to brainstorm how to engage national and local authorities for the conference and to find out about the Alliance’s plans in Morocco, including a civil society symposium, the Commit to Life zone and call to action event. Register for the information session HERE, find more our preparations for the Ministerial Conference HERE and access the conference website HERE. Blanco Encalada St and Sucre Av, San Isidro, Buenos Aires Featured Mobility Snapshot: Buenos Aires 320 pedestrians and 60 cyclists use the intersection of Blanco Encalada Street and Sucre Avenue in San Isidro, Buenos Aires, Argentina. It is near a school, fast food restaurant, and leisure facilities. A Mobility Snapshot by Asociación Madres del Dolor found that footpaths and crossings at the intersection were not well maintained, there was no traffic calming, and that the speed limit was 50 km/h. IRAP analysis of the Mobility Snapshot recommended footpath improvements, signalized pedestrian crossings, speed limit reduction, and traffic calming measures. Implementing these would raise the intersection from a one-star to a four-star safety rating for pedestrians. Asociación Madres del Dolor is using its Mobility Snapshot to advocate for upgrades to the intersection. It has obtained commitment for construction of a new pedestrian crossing, which replaces an old and faded crossing and moves it to a better location, and a ramp to improve accessibility. Implementation is underway. “Prior to our Mobility Snapshot and advocacy, no one had requested these changes. People were just used to walking between cars and bikes. It’s a simple change that can make crossing that street much safer for so many,” says Viviam Perrone of Asociación Madres del Dolor. Read more HERE. NGO advocacy contributes to 30 km/h school zones in Malaysia    Speed limits in school zones across Malaysia are to be lowered from 40 km/h to 30 km/h, announced the country’s Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi last month. Among the contributors to this achievement was Safe Kids Malaysia, whose advocacy efforts played a role in the government’s decision. By leveraging the Accountability Toolkit—a set of practical tools that empowers NGOs to hold their governments accountable for the safety of all road users—they documented their advocacy, and developed talking points and a checklist of interventions which they used while meeting with government officials and other stakeholders. Their advocacy was also informed by research evidence that highlighted the risks associated with unsafe school zones. According to Kulanthayan KC Mani, Safe Kids Malaysia, “the toolkit not only provided organized talking points and a step-by-step guide but also served as a checklist to ensure no critical elements were overlooked. It was instrumental in documenting and storing key information, which was essential for continuity as the advocacy journey progressed.” The proactive role of the Malaysian government in aligning with global road safety policies was also crucial. “The Malaysian government’s adoption of the Global Plan for the Decade of Action for Road Safety 2021-2030, evident in the National Road Safety Action Plan 2022-2030, was also crucial and prioritized speed reduction, including the push for 30 km/h zones,” says Kulanthayan KC Mani. Read more HERE.

Alliance members at the Sixth Global Meeting Alliance welcomes new members   The Alliance is delighted to welcome two new members that joined recently.  Associate members Alliance For Science, Ethiopia Prévention-Action Sécurité Routière PASROUT, Guinea Read more about our new members HERE and read more about joining the Alliance HERE. Upcoming events and deadlines Powered Two-Wheeler Safety, Safety 2024 preconference workshop: 31 August 2024, Safety 2024 pre-event, New Delhi, India.  Safe Helmets for All: Checking the Realities, Alliance Safety 2024 pre-conference workshop: 1 September 2024, 05:30 CET, Safety 2024 pre-event, India Habitat Center, New Delhi, India. 15th World Conference on Injury Prevention and Safety Promotion (Safety 2024): 2–4 September 2024, New Delhi, India. Find out more HERE. Alliance information session on the Fourth Ministerial Conference on Road Safety: 17 September 2024, 14:00 CET, Online. Find out more HERE. Africa Chapter meeting 2024: 25 September 2024, 14:00 CET, Online. Find out more HERE. First Latin American Regional Meeting of the Global Alliance of NGOs for Road Safety: 5–7 November 2024, Mexico City, Mexico. Find out more HERE. Civil Society Symposium: 17 February 2025, Marrakech, Morocco. Fourth Global Ministerial Conference on Road Safety: 18–20 February 2025, Marrakech, Morocco.