Work by UN and WHO to tackle 'the global road safety
crisis'
The growing global scale of road death and injury is
receiving attention through an international Collaboration Forum,
set up since April 2004.
Since the launch of the World Report on Road Traffic Injury
Prevention in April 2004, the World Health Organisation - in
accordance with its new Coordinator role - has facilitated the
formation of a group consisting of UN and a whole range of
international organisations, as well as two meetings of this
Collaboration Forum. The European Federation of Road Traffic
Victims (FEVR) is part of that Forum and is represented by Brigitte
Chaudhry of RoadPeace, the present FEVR President.
The goal of the collaboration is "to facilitate international
cooperation among UN agencies and other international partners - in
order to implement UN General Assembly Resolution 58/289 and the
recommendations of the World report on road traffic injury
prevention..."
Some objectives to meet this goal have already been identified,
amongst them to develop guidance and support for effective
interventions and strengthen global and regional coordination on
road safety, with certain 'products' selected to achieve them, such
as data collection, research, provision of technical support.
The post crash stage has so far not received sufficient
attention - there still needs to be greater appreciation of the
fact that treating the consequences of crashes seriously (and that
includes justice and care for victims) will have as a result a more
serious treatment of the causes and hence contribute to prevention
- both are interdependent.
Our greatest hope is that this global collaboration will raise
public awareness and raise and sustain political will of
governments worldwide and in this way help avert the growing
disaster.
WHO Newsletter
The
WHO Newsletter Road Ahead, issue 4, reports amongst many other
issues, on events held for World Day of Remembrance for Road
Traffic Victims, which RoadPeace and FEVR are coordinating and
promoting..
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