global Road Safety Events at United Nations Headquarters
March 31, 2008

62nd United Nations General Assembly Session
87th Plenary meeting 

On Monday, March 31st, Ambassador Fuad Al-Hinai, Permanent Representative of the Sultanate of Oman to the United Nations, introduced resolution A/62/244 Improving Global Road Safety in the 62nd Session of the General Assembly and it passed by acclimation.  The resolution, co-sponsored by 94 nations, called for a United Nations ministerial conference on global road safety.  General Victor Kiryanov, Head of the Russian Federation Road Safety Inspectorate, announced on behalf of his government that the Russian Federation will host the November 2009 conference.   The resolution also urged member states to participate in two upcoming UN projects that will prepare countries for the ministerial conference: a global road safety status report under development at the World Health Organization, and national and regional target setting initiatives to be undertaken by the UN Economic Commissions. The resolution was endorsed by both the speakers and the larger assembly body.  The adoption of this resolution approving a ministerial-level conference is a major achievement in the effort to reverse the road traffic injury epidemic.  In a post-session briefing, Ambassador Al-Hinai acknowledged the widespread support for the 2008 resolution and reflected on the journey since 2004 when he had introduced the first U.N. global road safety resolution.   In 2004, he noted, the push for change at the UN was organized by a very small group; today, more than 250 stakeholders attended to celebrate the resolution that passed with almost 100 nations as co-sponsors, with each representing many more working around the world to make roads safe.

The resolution recognized the advances made in global road safety since the UN took up the global road safety crisis in 2004 and commended the World Health Organization, for its leadership of the UN Road Safety Collaboration and development of road safety guidelines; the World Bank, for establishing the first global road safety funding mechanism; the Global Road Safety Facility; the UN Regional Economic Commissions, for effectively advocating increased political commitment to safe transport; and the Commission for Global Road Safety,  for its 2006 report Make Roads Safe:  A New Priority for Sustainable Development.  In that report, the Commission for Global Road Safety established the link between road safety and achievement of the Millennium Development goals and made a set of key recommendations addressing the road safety epidemic.  Under the leadership of Lord Robertson of Port Ellen, the Commission initiated the call for a UN ministerial conference.  Lord Robertson addressed the assembly on behalf of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

Although road traffic fatalities consume 1-2% of annual GDP with a disproportionate impact on developing nations, this epidemic of road traffic injuries has struggled with an absence of high-level political support and minimal resource funding.  Official statements were made by fifteen nations, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies and the Holy See supporting the urgent need to accurately frame and address road safety as an international public health crisis and development issue.
   
The General Assembly supported a global ministerial conference to raise national political will and review progress made in implementing the recommendations of the World Report on Road Traffic Injury Prevention.

 Lester Michael Henry, Minister of Transport for Jamaica views the conference as “the perfect opportunity to mobilize the leaders in the Transport sector and create the opportunity for enhanced leadership in road safety.”   In acknowledging the World Report framework, Sanja Stiglic Ambassador for Slovenia and speaking on behalf of the European Union, summarized the reason we must act now – “we know that many of these deaths are preventable”.   Ms. Nancy Carter-Foster, speaking for the U.S. State Department called for an international dialogue on addressing the problem and underscored Ms. Stiglic’s call for action.   Ms. Carter–Foster highlighted the preventable nature of road traffic injury and losses and stressed they should not be accepted as the price for mobility or economic growth and development.

Building country capacity and establishing a data collection system were consistently identified as critical steps in improving road safety.  Based on in-country experience, Michael Schulz (International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies) expects that the cost of road traffic fatalities and injuries is vastly underestimated.  Because this problem exacts the largest toll in developing and transitional nations, it is a development issue, both a consequence of development and a barrier to sustainable development. Bui The Giang, Ambassador for Vietnam knows the cost to his country - USD $900 million annually for 2002 and 2003 and the impact – “a threat to hard-earned development achievements”.   Detailing the economic burden experienced in Latin America and the Caribbean where road traffic injuries are the second leading cause of permanent motor disability, Arturo Cervantes,  Director of the National Center for Injury Prevention in Mexico’s Ministry of Health, stated “this pandemic is a matter not only of economics, but of social justice as well”.
Read the meeting report ►

Post-Debate Briefing

In the post-session briefing, Ambassador Al-Hinai and General Kiryanov celebrated the passage of the resolution and took questions from attending stakeholders and media.  They described this resolution as a significant milestone.  The Ambassador from Oman recalled the beginning of the effort when “everyone thought a ministerial conference would be ten years away,” and noted that “we did it in exactly five”.   In 2002, the Global Road Safety Steering Committee was formed to bring the global road safety crisis to the attention of government leaders through the UN.  Many of the original members of the Steering Committee joined Ambassador Al-Hinai in the post-debate briefing along with key partners who have joined the effort since 2004.  Panelists included:  Lord Robertson, Chairman of the Commission for Global Road Safety; Anthony Bliss, Lead Road Safety Specialist at the World Bank; Karla Gonzalez, Minister of Public Works and Transport for Costa Rica; Dr. Etienne Krug, Director of the Department for Violence and Injury Prevention and Disability at the World Health Organization; and Michelle Yeoh, actress and Global Ambassador for the Make Roads Safe Campaign. Dr. Mark Rosenberg, Director of the Global Road Safety Forum, chaired the briefing.


Lord Robertson, chair of the Commission for Global Road Safety, commented on the day’s significance and the road ahead:  “Today is a breakthrough.  Getting the UN involved is not something that happens overnight; it is a breakthrough in public consciousness.  The conference is not an event but part of a process that will tackle the economic costs and the grief this issue represents.  Today is a breakthrough that will let us tackle this global issue and come up with a global solution.”