Road Safety Awareness in Cambodia: Experts Come Together to Develop a National Helmet Action Plan for Reducing Road Crash Fatalities and Severe Head Injuries

Friday, November 2, 2012

Experts Come Together to Develop a National Helmet Action Plan for Reducing Road Crash Fatalities and Severe Head Injuries

A national workshop on the development of the National Helmet Action Plan was held on November 1st 2012 at Phnom Penh Hotel. The workshop presided over by HE Suon Rachana — Secretary of State of the Ministry of Public Works and Transport (MPWT). There were 70 particpants, who are representatives from several government ministries, members of the National Road Safety Committee (NRSC), civil societies working on road safety, and private sectors actively participated in the workshop.

The main objective of the workshop was to develop a 3-year detailed and effective National Helmet Action Plan (2013-2015) that will become as a tool for the government to achieve the goal of 100% helmet wearing rate by 2020 and to save life of those motorbike drivers and passengers from severe head injury in road crashes.

According to the Road Crash and Victim Information System (RCVIS) annual report 2011, there were 1,905 deaths of which 1,262 were motorcyclists (drivers and passengers). There were almost 70% had head injuries. Noticebly, motorbike passengers had a higher rate of head injury than motorbike drivers. According to an international study has revealed that a proper helmet wearing could reduce a chance of death from head injury by nearly 40% and a chance of severe head injury by more than 70%.

According to a survey report in 2011 in three provinces: Kandal , Kampong Speu, and Phnom Penh; the helmet wearing rate among motorbike drivers was 63% and passengers was only 6%. The survey conducted by Handicap International (HI) in collaboration with Johns Hopkins University.

A lively workshop concluded with positive suggestions and comments from technical experts and participants those included key recommendations and strategic activities that would become as an implementation guidance tool that leads increasing helmet wearing rate as planned.

Cambodia together with many countries have committed to reduce number of death to 50% by 2020 through the implementation of their national action plan. The plan is aligned with the Global Decade of Action for Road Safety 2011-2020 adopted by the United Nation.