Fifth Global Meeting

The Fifth Global Meeting of Nongovernmental Organizations Advocating for Road Safety and Road Victims was held 3 – 6 April 2017 at the Sama-Sama Hotel, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

The main aims of the Global Meeting were to facilitate members’ continued involvement in reaching the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and preparation for key road safety key events, including the Fourth UN Road Safety Week in May 2017. It was hosted by the Global Alliance of NGOs for Road Safety and the Malaysian Ministry of Transport and co-sponsored by the World Health Organization, the UN Secretary-General’s Special Envoy for Road Safety, Global Road Safety Facility, World Bank, FedEx, Prudence Foundation and others. Read about the Global Meeting’s sponsors HERE.

The Global Meeting was attended by 200 delegates from more than 70 countries and represented Alliance member NGOs, multilateral and bilateral organizations and corporations. The meeting featured key note speakers including the Honorable Dato’ Sri Liow Tiong Lai; Professor Wong, Director General, Malaysian Institute of Road Safety Research (MIROS); Dr. Etienne Krug, Director, Department for Management of Noncommunicable Diseases, Disability, Violence and Injury Prevention, WHO; Mr. Jean Todt, the UN Secretary-General’s Special Envoy for Road Safety; Mr. Marc Shotten, Program Manager, Global Road Safety Facility (GRSF), World Bank; and Saul Billingsley, FIA Foundation.

Key events at the Global Meeting included: the kick off event for the Fourth UN Global Road Safety Week (read more HERE), the Third General Assembly of the Global Assembly of NGOs for Road Safety, and the FedEx Global Road Safety Award, which was presented to three NGOs (read more about the awards and the winners HERE).

The Global Meeting achieved a number of outcomes, which will influence the global road safety landscape in coming years and help to achieve the SDG to reduce the number of road deaths by 50% by 2020.

Outcomes:

Advocacy:

• The Alliance Malaysia Declaration, which calls for NGOs to be consulted in implementing evidence based programs, was handed over to the Honorable Dato’ Sri Liow Tiong Lai Minister of Transport, Malaysia;
• 187 NGO commitments were made for specific road safety activities to be implemented over the next two years, including setting up speedbumps outside schools in Zambia and training mechanics in Nepal;
• 200 NGOs and stakeholders listed activities for the #SLOWDOWN campaign and the fourth UN Global Road Safety Week, that will take place from 8-14 May 2017;
• A moment’s silence was held for road victims;
• Inaugural FedEx Road Safety Award handed over to NGOs from South Africa, Benin and Malaysia. 
• Kick-off event for the Fourth global Road safety Week at Denkil Selangor School, Kuala Lumpur

Networking and sharing:

• 6 road safety partnerships announced;
• 3 regional networks established for Alliance members agrees to establish regional networks in Anglophone Africa, Francophone countries and South Asia;
• 5 Alliance working groups established under the five Decade of Action pillars;
• A poster exhibition, opened by the Honorable Dato’ Sri Liow Tiong Lai minister of Transport, Malaysia, displayed best practice road safety work from 100 NGOs from 68 countries.

Capacity building:

• 120 NGO delegates participated in 17 workshops;
• 12 delegates were trained in Monitoring and Evaluation by WHO;
• 10 delegates were trained in Project Management by Pamoja;
• 10 delegates were trained in Social Marketing and Behavior Change Communication by Road Safety Analysis;
• 10 delegates were trained in being media spokespersons by GRSP;
• 12 Alliance Advocates renewed their commitment to their action plans.

Find minutes from the meeting HERE.

Minutes from the General Assembly are found HERE.

Resources

You can find the agenda from the Global Meeting HERE and all the presentations HERE.

Keynote speakers: It is also possible to watch Christian Friis Bach of UNECE’s address to the Global Meeting HERE and read Y. B. Dato’ Sri Liow Tiong Lai, Malaysia Minister of Transport’s speech HERE.

The poster exhibition was an opportunity for Alliance members to showcase their work and share knowledge. See the posters HERE.

Press Coverage

Read the press release from the meeting HERE.

See media coverage of the Global Meeting HERE and of the FedEx Awards HERE.

Photos

We are grateful to Richard Ahlstrom and Ali Zaherzadeh for allowing us to use their photographs of the Global Meeting. Click on the links to see their photographs. You are welcome to use the photos but please credit them.

Main photograph courtesy of Richard Ahlstrom.