Simultaneous with the launch of the Global Plan led by the World Health Organization (WHO), members of the Global Youth Coalition from Uganda and Rwanda joined local handovers of the Global Plan to local governments, ministers, and decision-makers. Last week, October 28, Oliva Nalwadda and Kenneth Mulinde from Uganda and Nkumbuye Amie from Rwanda represented young people during handovers of the Plan.

As part of the launch of the Plan, road safety NGOs are arranging ceremonial handovers to get the plan directly into the hands of the decision-makers who are responsible for implementing it. After the handover, follow-ups will be done to make sure governments and other organizations are accountable to put the Plan into action.

Handovers in Uganda
The Global Alliance of NGOs for Road Safety through one of its partners, Hope for Victims of Traffic Accidents (HOVITA) Uganda, invited members of the Global Youth Coalition for Road Safety to represent young people during the handover ceremony of the Global Plan for the Decade of Action for Road Safety.

The Plan was passed down to representatives of the Ministry of Works and Transport. Included in the handover were the Minister of Works and Transport Hon. Edward Katumba Wamala, WHO representative Dr. Yonas Tegegn, and Executive Director of HOVITA Mr. Sam Bambanza. Coalition Youth Leadership Board Member, Oliva Nalwadda, gave remarks on the importance of meaningful youth engagement, highlighting the role of youth in the Plan as key stakeholders.

Handovers in Rwanda
In Rwanda, Coalition member Nkumbuye Amie represented young people during the handover ceremony. President of Health People Rwanda, Innocent Nzeyimana, MD, MMed led the session to explain the core elements of the new Decade of Action for Road Safety, adding how the Plan supports the achievement of the road safety targets listed in the document. In Rwanda, the Plan was handed over to the Ministry of Infrastructure.

The handover was facilitated through a private roundtable with key stakeholders including young people. The discussions sought to identify and engage decision-makers and organizations with responsibilities for road safety within the country.

The handovers, led by the Global Alliance of NGOs for Road Safety, began on the 26^th of October and continues throughout November. Countries from all over the world are participating in the handover through public ceremonies, roundtable discussions, and even private meetings. 

READ ABOUT THE HANDOVERS 

Last week, October 28, the World Health Organization (WHO) through the Road Safety Collaboration launched the Global Plan in an online event. The session discussed the Global Plan for Road Safety, what it can be used for, how it can be used, and how it will aid in the achievement of road safety targets listed in the Decade of Action for Road Safety. 

The Global Plan
The Global Plan describes what is needed to achieve the road safety targets in the Decade of Action. It also calls on governments, partners, and other stakeholders to implement an integrated Safe Systems Approach in their local and global plans and projects.

The launch featured global road safety leaders from different sectors including WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, President of the UN General Assembly Abdulla Shahid, Executive Secretary of the UN Economic Commission for Africa Vera Songwe, UN Secretary General’s Special Envoy for Road Safety Jean Todt, and more.

During the launch, the different speakers emphasized the importance of the Plan in halving the number of road-related deaths and injuries by the year 2030. In his address, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus talked about how the Plan promotes safe walking, cycling, and mobility. He challenged all stakeholders to do their roles to implement the Global Plan. 

“[The Plan] calls on governments to provide the financial and human resources needed to achieve a 50% reduction In road traffic deaths and serious injuries by 2030. It also calls on young people, academia, civil society, and the private sector to do their part in making mobility safe. The implementation of the global plan will be the focus of discussions during the 2022 high-level meeting on improving global road safety” – Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus

Echoing his sentiments, President of the UN General Assembly Abdulla Shahid encouraged governments and decision-makers to use the global plan to strengthen their road safety policies saying that it will help make roads that are healthier, greener, and more livable.

“This Global Plan will guide our efforts to make our roads safer in the coming years – saving lives and preventing serious injuries… It is up to us to deliver” – Abdulla Shahid. 

Meanwhile, Executive Secretary of the UN Economic Commission for Africa Vera Songwe credits the Global Plan in addressing different road safety issues in low-and-middle-income countries, presenting strategies on how these issues could be approached. 

She shares her commitment to support member states in the implementation of the Plan.

Young people and the Global Plan
During the launch of the Plan, Global Youth Coalition Youth Leadership Board Member, Deepanshu Gupta, joins global road safety leaders to represent youth and the Coalition.

Other speakers during the launch showed support to the identification of young people as key stakeholders in efforts to achieve the road safety targets by the end of the Decade. In his speech, UN Secretary General’s Special Envoy for Road Safety Jean Todt, shares his optimism with the Plan and the possibility of achieving the targets in the new Decade.

“The Global Plan offers the framework of actions needed for countries and civil societies to reach our target to halve road deaths and injuries by 2030. The Global Plan advocates for making the entire transport system safe, affordable, sustainable, and accessible to all”

During his intervention, Deepanshu highlights how the current generation of young people is the largest in the world and emphasizes how youth are included in the Global Plan.  

“For the first time, the Global Plan has identified youth as crucial stakeholders. I sincerely hope that all stakeholders associated with the cause should draw inspiration from the plan and involve youth meaningfully to save lives” -Deepanshu Gupta 

Deepanshu emphasized how young people, through the Global Youth Coalition, are taking action to address road safety issues at both local and global levels. He explained how members of the Coalition have come together for the mission of saving lives.

In the session, Deepanshu shares his expectations for intergenerational collaborations where decision-makers will work hand-in-hand with young people in all stages of planning and decision making – where there is no tokenism and where youth are given the opportunity for equal participation.

Global Ambassador of Child Health Initiative Zoleka Mandela closed the session by calling out world leaders for their inaction to address the road safety crisis.  “When our leaders know exactly what the solutions are, and those solutions are completely within their grasp, their lack of action is nothing short of disgraceful,” she said.

The Global Plan challenges all stakeholders to play their role in halving the number of road-related deaths and injuries by the year 2030. If you missed the launch, you can watch it again! 

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YOURS – Youth for Road Safety is looking for a project manager to help support the strategic ambitions of the organization. The Project Manager is responsible for coordinating the Global Youth Coalition for Road Safety, in collaboration with the YOURS team and following the organizational principles, vision, and mission.

About our work
YOURS is a global organization that acts to make the world’s roads safe for and with youth. Road crashes are the leading killer of young people. Everyday 1000 youth aged 15-29 are dying on the world’s roads and youth are saying enough is enough. 

We are experts in youth and road safety issues and advocate for sustainable mobility at the highest levels of decision-making. We believe in meaningful youth participation as a key strategy to change these statistics. With strategic global advocacy and empowering youth locally, we will unlock a global revolution for road safety and make this generation the last one facing this massive public health threat.

We are a small team with big ideas and powerful allies. We are proud of our work and have loads of fun while doing it. 

Roles and responsibilities of the Project Manager
The Project Manager will have the overall responsibility for successfully implementing the project within the approved project plan. The duties of the project manager include; developing and updating project plans to new developments, managing the implementation of required activities, establishing solid working relationships within the YOURS team, young leaders, donors, and other project stakeholders, and more. 

The project manager will work under the leadership and support of the advocacy director. Together they will map and design strategies to lead and attend the most significant events where youth can advocate and raise awareness about road safety and sustainable mobility through meaningful youth participation mechanisms. 

Read the full list of terms and references by clicking “more about the position”. 

Closing date is on November 15, 2021

MORE ABOUT THE POSITION 

The Global Youth Coalition for Road Safety along with FIA Foundation is leading a workshop during the UN Climate Change Conference of Youth (COY16) which connects road safety with transport decarbonization. The workshop, titled “Connecting the biggest killer of youth and transport decarbonization” will be held virtually this coming Friday, 29 October, at 3 pm BST or 4 pm CET on COY’s digital platform.

The Conference on Youth COY16 is an event under the banner of YOUNGO – the Official Youth Constituency of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). It provides young people with opportunities for capacity building and policy training as a form of preparation for COP26. The conference gathers youth from around the world to raise their voices and bring them to the UN Climate Negotiations. For the first time, road safety and sustainable transport are given a focus. 

The workshop will reiterate points on how transportation and mobility connect with climate by focusing on transport decarbonization. Decarbonization is the reduction of carbon which will result in more efficient consumption of energy. Thus, in turn, will support the creation of cleaner, healthier, and more livable cities. 

Speakers of the workshop will also explain how an equitable transport system will maximize the physical and mental health benefits for local and global communities. They will also demonstrate the link between decarbonized transport, road safety, and minimizing pollution. 

Key outcomes
The workshop will equip participants with key data and policy requests to use with government representatives and stakeholders at the Conference of Parties (COP26). This will help them advocate for the safety and inclusiveness of transport decarbonization in climate change mitigation and agenda adaptation through meaningful youth engagement. 

COY16 will run from the 28th to the 31st of October. The second day will feature workshops on politics and policymaking, partners, goals and youth activism, climate finance, climate justice, human rights & wellbeing, mobility & transport, climate change future scenarios, and wildlife & environment conservation. 

REGISTER TO THE WORKSHOP 

Global Youth Coalition Youth Leadership Board member, Deepanshu Gupta (India), joins the launch of the Global Plan led by the World Health Organization. The launch, happening on Thursday, October 28 at 2 pm CET, will feature global road safety leaders who will highlight the “what to dos”, “how to dos”, and “whos” of road safety and the Global Plan. Read about how Deepanshu is involved in road safety and the role of the Decade of Action and the Global Plan in his efforts to further road safety and sustainable mobility.

1. How did you get involved with road safety? 
Seven years back, my father was badly injured in a road crash. The crash was so bad that he was on complete bed rest for almost 18 months. It’s still very excruciating for my family and myself to recall the emotional and financial trauma we went through. After that, I met a group of students who have also lost friends to road crashes. They were running some road safety awareness programs as a way to influence youth to become forerunners in road safety efforts. I started volunteering with them to start educating people. I also rallied behind policymakers to prioritize road safety actions. After my graduation, I worked at a human capital consulting firm as an associate for four months before I left to pursue road safety full time. Since then, there has been no looking back.

2. Do you think decision-makers are prioritizing road safety in their agendas?
Although the importance of road safety is recognized, I believe it still isn’t a top priority on their agendas. Many people work in road safety but at the end of the day, it’s a systemic issue and individual interventions can only go so far. There is a critical need for initiatives that are not only high-prioritized but also transparent and upfront to the public. Policies must be examined once they have been implemented and errors must be corrected. 

The fact that the number of fatalities, which exceeds a million per year, has remained unchanged for the past two decades indicates that it is vital for decision-makers to address these concerns. The burden of road traffic injuries on families, states, and nations is something that should motivate decision-makers to prioritize road safety. There are young people out there who are passionate about this cause; local decision-makers should involve them in a meaningful way. The energy and the enthusiasm that youth can bring to this movement can definitely improve the situation.

3. What do you think is the role of the Decade of Action and the Global Plan in implementing road safety and sustainable mobility plans and policies?
The Decade of Action establishes an impact-oriented aim. The target of a 50% reduction in road traffic fatalities by 2030 is a paradigm shift that guides us to how we need to approach development. The Safe Systems approach acknowledges the possibility of human error which is a welcome addition to previous systems that focused on vehicles and infrastructure. The Global Plan brings everyone together under one roof, coordinating all initiatives that may otherwise be carried out in isolation. It emphasizes the importance of looking at multimodal types of infrastructure development in poor and middle-income nations, as well as fostering international development collaborations.

4. What do you think young people can do to achieve the targets set in the Decade of Action for Road Safety? 
At a point when 73% of road crash mortality falls under the age group of 25, young people have a two-fold role in achieving the targets of the Decade Action Plan. Firstly, in order to reduce road crash mortality by 50%, youth need to actively reform their driving and pedestrian practices while also engaging in post-crash rescue and trauma care. One needs to increasingly reinvent their role as a responsible citizen to facilitate safer roads for all.

Secondly, given that the developing countries are particularly more vulnerable to road crashes and mortality owing to lower levels of income and development, youth can play an active role in lobbying for better, well-informed legislation by educating their peers and raising road safety awareness for the public. Youth can also form or join civil societies and collaborate with similar organizations to convince the state to actively invest in road safety. Spreading information about safe and sustainable transport and good pedestrian practices at grassroots levels can immensely contribute to the achievement of the targets in the New Decade.

5. What do you think youth can contribute to the Global Plan? 
Since young people constitute the generation that will bear the brunt of uninformed laws and transportation reforms, they need to be actively involved in all reformation drives. Their needs, ideas, and demands need to be gathered and incorporated into laws and transportation structures. There needs to be a genuine effort to engage with young leaders and provide platforms for fresh perspectives. Apart from personally adopting safer transportation practices, youth are instrumental in holding grassroots-level awareness campaigns. They can also empower common people by collaborating with non-profit organizations and lobbying for better laws and overall state performances in enforcement and engineering. Most importantly, local decision-makers should see them as crucial stakeholders in decision-making and implementation.

6. How do you think the Global Plan or the Decade of Action for Road Safety connects with the Global Youth Statement for Road Safety? 
Some of the primary points in the Global Youth Statement for Road Safety are the exclusion of youth as a major stakeholder in decision making, lack of education and awareness, and poorly designed policies and road infrastructure. The Global Plan, which encapsulates the core ideals of the New Decade of Action for Road Safety, has been instrumental in addressing these concerns. By calling for youth involvement in decision-making and by creating tools and opportunities to reach out to governments, the Global Plan recognizes the valuable contributions youth can make in the reform of the transportation agenda. The Plan emphasizes the role of civil societies and governments in spreading awareness regarding safer transit practices. Most importantly, it calls upon policymakers to explore the intersection of gender and social justice within transportation reforms to point out that informed policies are the key to bringing out changes on the ground.

7. What is your message for decision-makers and to young people around the following the launch of the global plan? 
To the youth, let’s keep claiming our space on all levels. Organize youth consultations, hold meetings with local decision-makers right after the launch of the Global Plan and find a meaningful way to engage with stakeholders. Use the Global Plan as a catalyst to prioritize youth action in road safety. Get involved and involve other fellow young people.

To the decision-makers, it’s high time to realize that meaningful youth engagement in road safety can actually bring down road crashes and save lives. Let’s not wait for the next five Global Plans and millions of other fatalities until you start believing in youth. Let’s go above and beyond the global plan and save lives.

READ THE GLOBAL PLAN       REGISTER TO LAUNCH OF GLOBAL PLAN

Earlier last week, October 14, the World Health Organization (WHO) published the Global Plan for the Decade of Action 2021-2030. The Global Plan describes what is needed to achieve the road safety targets listed under the Decade of Action for Road Safety. It also calls on governments and partners to implement and integrate the Safe Systems Approach in the creation and implementation of strategies on road safety, sustainable mobility, and urban design.

Young people and the Global Plan
The Global Plan is for inspiring national and local governments and stakeholders who have the ability to influence road safety. These would include civil societies, academia, private sectors, donors, communities, and youth leaders as they develop national and local action plans and targets for the Decade of Action.

The Global Plan writes that young people have a big role to play in the achievement of the road safety targets by 2030. It emphasizes that there are two key reasons why young people have an important role in shaping the future transport system; first, they are the age group most affected by road crashes, and second. They are the generation that will inherit the outcomes of decisions.

According to the Plan, young people need to be consulted about their needs as they have the capacity to generate ideas on how to protect their peers and other vulnerable road users. Through resources, capacity development, and other opportunities, young people can also shape the road safety and mobility system in local and, eventually, global settings. 

“Meaningful engagement with young leaders can help foster greater ownership of the road safety issues as well as develop a new cohort of road safety advocates with a fresh perspective on the future of mobility.” 

The Safe Systems Approach 
The Global Plan seeks to integrate all elements of the Safe Systems Approach to address global road safety and mobility issues and to halve the number. These include multimodal transport and land-use planning, safe road infrastructure, safe vehicles, safe road use, and post-crash response. 

The Safe Systems Approach – a core feature of the Decade of Action – recognizes that road safety is a complex system that places safety at its core. It recognizes that humans, vehicles, and road infrastructure need to interact in a way that would ensure the highest level of safety. 

The plan prioritizes and implements the Safe Systems approach that positions road safety as a key driver of sustainable development. In order to successfully implement the Safe Systems approach, all stakeholders must be meaningfully involved and engaged. Young people, who make up a large part of the population, are taking action to address road safety concerns around the world through the Global Youth Coalition for Road Safety. Take part today!

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