Commonwealth Action Series Highlights Road Safety with Coalition members
The Commonwealth has launched the Commonwealth Action Series to continue raising awareness on issues that affect the nations of the Commonwealth. The series runs throughout 2020, beginning earlier this July. The series features six episodes; (1) taking charge of the future, (2) trade, entrepreneurship, and employment, (3) technology and innovation, (4) youth development: inclusive, equitable, and accessible opportunities, (5) governance and rule of law: youth leadership in decision-making, and (6) environment: taking charge of the future.
The fourth episode was launched earlier this 13 October, featuring a sub-session on fighting the biggest killer of youth in the Commonwealth – road crashes.
The session featured speakers from the road safety sector; Professor Agnes Binagwaho, PhD., M.D. – Vice-Chancellor of the University of Global Health Equity, Jessica Truong – Vice President of Programs and Asia Pacific Region of Toward Zero Foundation, and Raquel Barrios – Project Manager of YOURS – Youth for Road Safety.
The speakers highlighted the severe effects road crashes have on the lives of people in the Commonwealth and across the globe.
Professor Agnes talked about road safety and how it affects society in the areas of equity, economy, sustainability, and accessibility. Talking about how young people are the most affected when it comes to road crashes, Professor Agnes raises the concern of youth being less able to bear the costs associated with injuries and disabilities caused by road crashes.
Jessica raised awareness by talking about the facts and figures that prove the urgency of how we need to address road crashes as “the biggest public health concern” that young people face today. She talked about how the Commonwealth countries are showing an increase in the rate of deaths and injuries. “If we don’t put a priority focus on road trauma and addressing it, we’re not putting in place enough measures to keep our young people safe.”
Finally, Raquel discussed the importance of youth in the road safety revolution. She talked about how YOURS, through the Global Youth Coalition, is championing meaningful youth participation. The Coalition provides its members with resources, capacity development tools, and partnerships in order to promote evidence-based actions and innovative strategies that will contribute to the achievement of the Global Youth Statement and the rest of the Sustainable Development Goals.
Following the presentation, a youth panel was held where members of the Global Youth Coalition led the discussion on road safety in the Commonwealth. The panel was led by Simon Patrick Obi from Nigera and was participated by Grace Willems from Australia, Ami Nkumbuye from Rwanda, Olivia Nalwadda from Uganda, and Alex Ayub from Kenya.
The panel brought up issues on road safety and sustainable mobility in their respective counties. Olivia talked about how commute is dangerous for both youth and elderly in Uganda saying that “we are seeing children die on their way to school and elderly feeling unsafe to walk in the evenings” and emphasized that “everyone feels unsafe on our roads”.
“Coming from a low income country should not be a death sentence”
