On Wednesday 20 September, as part of European Mobility Week, the European Commission announced that it is taking part in a worldwide campaign to reduce the number of road accidents. The campaign, which is called ‘Make a Safety Statement’ will run for two years in over 1,000 towns and cities in 80 countries.
The campaign was launched by the UN Secretary General’s Special Envoy for Road Safety and former French rally driver, Jean Todt. He was accompanied by his wife, the Oscar-winning actress and goodwill ambassador for the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), Michelle Yeoh, the Commissioner for Transport, Adina Vălean, and Jean-Charles Decaux, co-CEO of the JCDecaux advertising group.
According to Mr Todt, road accidents kill 1.3 million people every year and 40 to 50 million are injured with a disability. They are the leading cause of death among young people aged between five and 29 worldwide. Developing countries account for 93% of victims and losses each year. “Despite the magnitude of the problem, road safety is not high enough on the political agenda in most countries”, he deplored.
The campaign brings together fourteen celebrities to encourage and call on regulators, fans and the public to adopt simple and effective rules to stay safe on the road.
“The situation is particularly horrific in the Global South. That is one reason why we in the EU have stepped up our efforts to support road safety projects beyond the EU”, commented Mrs Vălean at a press conference. She added that the EU had invested €3 million in the United Nations Road Safety Fund. (Original version in French by Anne Damiani)