UN Road Safety Fund Partnership Pledging Conference
Meetings & Events
Date: 20 July 2026
Language: English
Transcript: https://transcripts.un.org/en/asset/k13/k13bss1ju0
Transcripts available through this tool are created by using automatic speech recognition and are not official records nor official documents of the United Nations. Official records and official documents are available on the Official Document System of the United Nations.

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UNRSF · Head of Secretariat · Enika Henry [17:22]:

Good morning, everyone. We'll just give a few more seconds for our Special Envoy to arrive, and then we'll begin. Thank you. Maybe I will just take a few moments to inform that we do have interpretation from English to French and vice versa. And English is on channel 1 and French on channel 2. So you can connect your headsets if you need that. So just a quick update that the Special Envoy is just a minute away, so he's arriving from the gates. So I crave your indulgence just for a few more minutes.


Speaker 2 [22:10]:

Thank you. Thank you.


UNRSF · Head of Secretariat · Enika Henry [27:48]:

Okay, good morning everyone. Good morning. Thank you so much for your patience while we await the arrival of the Special Envoy. I think we will get started. So good morning to all. Good morning, Excellencies, distinguished guests, partners, and colleagues. My name is Enika Henry and I'm the head of the UN Road Safety Fund Secretariat. and I will be moderating this morning's event. Thank you so much for being here with us today. So welcome to this morning's event, the UNRSF Partnership Pledging Conference, with the theme Accelerating Road Safety and SDG Progress Through Multi-Stakeholder Commitments. This conference is convened pursuant to the 2026 UN General Assembly Resolution A/ATL.46 and co-hosted by France, Jamaica, the UN Secretary-General Special Envoy for Road Safety, and the UN Regional Commission's New York office. Together, we have convened governments, UN agencies, civil society, the private sector, investors, philanthropic partners at the UN Headquarters here today in New York. The reason we are here, we all know, it's a pressing one. Road traffic crashes remain the leading cause of death for children between the ages 5 to 29 years. More than 1.19 million people are killed on the world's roads each year, and the majority of those deaths are occurring in low- and middle-income countries where the resources to address them are most constrained. Today, our goal is to announce and to trigger further meaningful partnerships that maximize scarce resources so that the UN Road Safety Fund and its partners can sustain and expand its interventions through to the second half of the Decade of Action for Road Safety. I will now invite our co-hosts and our opening speakers to take the floor in turn. Please note that we do have French on Channel 2 and English interpretation on Channel 1 if needed, from English to French and French to English. And so with that, it's my pleasure to give the floor to Her Excellency Marie-Pierre Vedren, the Minister Delegate to the Minister of Interior of France. France is one of the UN Road Safety Fund's longstanding partners, and it's one of the co-hosts for today's conference. So it's really my pleasure to give the floor to Minister Vedren. The floor is yours. Thank you.


France · Minister Delegate to the Minister of Interior · Marie-Pierre Vedren [30:45]:

Merci.

Thank you very much, ladies and gentlemen. It's a great honor for France to co-sponsor this conference alongside Jamaica, the United Nations Special Envoy for Road Safety, and the Office of Regional Commissions in New York. I would like to begin by thanking you Thank you all for turning out in such large numbers this morning. Your presence reflects a conviction we all share. Road safety is not a technical issue reserved for specialists. It's a profoundly human issue, one of public health and of protecting lives. You reminded us that every year more than 1.2 million people die in traffic accidents worldwide and approximately 50 million are injured. Traffic accidents are thus the leading cause of death among children and young people aged 5 to 29. These figures are staggering, but they must not become abstract. We must not forget that behind each one of them is the devastated family, lives that are turned upside down in a matter of seconds. These tragedies are not inevitable, which is why we are gathered here today. The Decade of Action for Road Safety has set an ambitious goal to halve the number of people killed and injured on the roads by 2030. This goal is certainly challenging, but it is achievable if we continue to work together. Road safety is a collective responsibility. It requires a comprehensive approach based on safer infrastructure, more efficient vehicles, early education about risk, responsible behaviors, and emergency services capable of responding quickly when accidents occur. And the United Nations Road Safety Fund plays a vital role in this regard. In more than 90 countries, it helps transform international goals into concrete public policy by supporting national governments. And international cooperation is an essential tool when it comes to road safety. Experience shows that progress never happens on its own. The results we see today are the results of sustained political will maintained from— for more than half a century. They are the results of decisions that were sometimes difficult, sparking debates and opposition. Yet these decisions have saved tens of thousands of lives. In the early 1970s, more than 18,000 people died every year on French roads, and France In 1972, a genuine interministerial framework for road safety was established, chaired by the Prime Minister. The creation of the Interministerial Delegation for Road Safety also helped drive road safety policy at both the national and the local levels. From that point on, major reforms were implemented. Speed limits for each type of road, the mandatory seat belts use and helmet use for motorized two-wheelers. We also had introduction of mandatory vehicle inspection and points-based driver's license in 1992, road safety exams in the middle school in 1993, and installation of the first fixed automated speed cameras in 2003, tradition of the probationary driver's license in 2004, expansion of the highway network and intensified efforts to combat drunk driving. None of these measures was easily adopted. They all responded to the same need to protect human lives. The results speak for themselves. Traffic fatalities have been reduced by more than 5 times over the past 50 years in France, reaching around 3,300 today. Between 2000 and 2010, they decreased by more than 50%. But the French experience also teaches us another lesson when it comes to Kilometers per hour, and so on and so forth. And we've decided also more recently to respond more firmly to the most dangerous behaviors. The introduction of the offense of vehicle homicide in 2025 reflects a simple conviction: when certain behaviors reflect conscious and deliberate risk-taking, society's response must be commensurate with their severity. Extreme speeding has been penalized, and penalties for driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs has been Thank you. But we also know that sanctions are not enough. They must be accompanied by prevention. That is the whole point of the hard-hitting national campaign launched last April against the dangers of nitrous oxide, because behind this substance, all too often perceived as harmless, lie accidents, risky behavior, and sometimes irreversible tragedies. Prevention means enabling everyone to assess the consequences of their choices before it's too late. We must constantly innovate, therefore, to ensure safety on all roads. The challenge ahead of us goes far beyond our natural borders. France is fully committed to the European and international agenda. It has endorsed the Valletta Declaration, followed by the Stockholm Declaration. And we want to make sure that by 2050, no one is killed or seriously injured on the roads. Progress is possible, provided we maintain the political will and continue to cooperate. This is the mission of the United Nations Road Safety Fund. France is proud to have been one of its leading contributors since 2018. And today, I'm pleased and proud to announce that we are renewing this commitment with a contribution of $100,000 in 2026. This contribution will help fund very concrete projects— improving helmet-wearing regulations, expanding road safety education, preventing dangerous behavior, and supporting countries that wish to strengthen their road safety policies. Beyond its amount, this contribution reflects a firm belief: road safety is a shared good, and saving life, wherever it may be in the world, is always a step forward for humanity. Ladies and gentlemen, France remains deeply committed to multilateralism. Great causes know no borders. No single country can claim to have all the answers on its own. Sharing experiences, innovations, and successes is essential to our collective effectiveness. Let's continue to place the protection of life at the heart of every decision we make. Every reform we adopt, every technology we develop, every partnership and every commitment we make has the same goal: to ensure that a child will return home, that a parent is reunited with its family, and that France can be together again. It is our shared responsibility to ensure that a daily commute never turns into a tragedy, and France will continue to stand fully behind you. Thank you.


UNRSF · Head of Secretariat · Enika Henry [38:49]:

Uh, merci, Minister. Um, we're really appreciative of the, the support from France over the years. as a founding donor, but since then, really a strong technical partner, sharing all of your best practices and also serving in an advisory capacity on our advisory board. We really appreciate the support that we've received from France and appreciate the continued financial pledge that was made today. With this, I now invite His Excellency Daryl Vaz, Minister of Transport of Jamaica, co-host of this conference, to join us today with a message by video. Please.


Jamaica · Minister of Transport · Daryl Vaz [39:31]:

Excellencies, Mr. Gene Todd, United Nations Secretary-General's Special Envoy for Road Safety, Ms. Nika Henry, Head of the United Nations Road Safety Fund, distinguished ministers, heads of delegation, development partners, Donors, ladies and gentlemen, good morning. It is a distinct honor for Jamaica to co-host this pledging conference under the theme Scaling Up and Accelerating the Implementation of Commitments to Halving Road Traffic Deaths and Injuries by 2030. Road safety is no longer viewed solely through the lens of transport. It is fundamentally a public health issue, a development priority, and a human rights imperative integral to achieving the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals. As a small island developing state, Jamaica understands both the urgency and the complexity of this challenge. Road traffic crashes, continue to have an unacceptable human and economic toll on our country. While Jamaica has recently recorded encouraging reductions in road fatalities compared to last year, every life lost is one too many. As of July 1st, 2026, 146 people have lost their lives on Jamaican roads. Vulnerable road users, including pedestrians, motorcyclists, cyclists, and pillion passengers, represent more than half of all the road deaths. While this downward trend is encouraging, we are not complacent. Jamaica has recorded more than 300 road fatalities annually in recent years. Excessive speeding, dangerous overtaking, distracted driving, and the overrepresentation of young males in fatal crashes continue to undermine our efforts. In response, the Government of Jamaica has adopted a comprehensive Safe System approach. Our national priorities are to strengthen governance and institutional coordination, modernize and implement our legislative framework, including the Road Traffic Act. Invest in safer infrastructure to better protect vulnerable road users. Strengthen enforcement by leveraging technology and intelligence-led policing. Expand public education to foster a culture of responsible road use. Improve road safety data and post-crash response. Notably, through our active United Nations Road Safety Fund-funded project implemented alongside PAHO and the WHO, Jamaica is aggressively strengthening its post-crash response. We are currently utilizing WHO tools to conduct a comprehensive emergency and critical care system assessment. This crucial initiative is building the national roadmap and technical capacity needed to deliver timely, life-saving trauma care immediately following a crash. However, no country can achieve these ambitions in isolation. The scale of this global challenge demands international cooperation, sustained financing, and the sharing of expertise. This is why the United Nations Road Safety Fund is so vital. Yet one of the greatest barriers to achieving our goals remains the significant global financing gap. Today is an opportunity to bridge that gap. As co-host, Jamaica calls upon governments, international financial institutions, philanthropic organizations, and the private sector to make bold pledges to the Fund. Your support is an investment in safer roads, healthier communities, and human life. The time to act is now. Let us ensure our commitments are matched by the resources needed to deliver meaningful change. I thank you.


UNRSF · Head of Secretariat · Enika Henry [44:05]:

Thank you very much, Minister Vaz. I now invite His Excellency Brian Wallace, Permanent Representative of Jamaica, to New York to continue on behalf of Jamaica's delegation. Ambassador Wallace, the floor is yours.


Jamaica · Permanent Representative · Brian Wallace [44:20]:

Thank you very much, Enika. Excellencies, Minister, Special Envoy, distinguished partners, please allow me to reiterate that Jamaica is honored to co-host this important pledging conference, and allow me to make the following additional remarks to complement those made by Minister Vaz. RSF, and all partners whose leadership continues to elevate the discourse around one of the world's most urgent yet preventable public health and development challenges. We just heard the statistics. Road traffic accidents claim 1.19 million lives each year, mostly in low- and middle-income countries. Road traffic injuries remain the leading cause of death among children and young adults between the ages of 5 and 29. These are lives that can and must be saved. For Jamaica, the challenge is significant. The majority of Jamaica's road fatalities are between the ages of 18 and 49, our most economically productive citizens. We continue to face a worrying rate of motorcycle fatalities and other challenges affecting vulnerable road users, reinforcing the need for sustained investment in safer infrastructure, stronger enforcement, and lasting behavioral change. We also continue to be confronted with the devastating impacts of major hurricanes— Hurricane Beryl in 2024, Hurricane Melissa in 2025— and as we rebuild our critical infrastructure, which was significantly impacted by these catastrophic events, we recognize the importance of embedding road safety in design. It is in so doing that we will rebuild stronger and more resilient communities. Every road we reconstruct should be safer than the one replaced, because resilient infrastructure must also protect lives. Today's pledging conference provides a vital opportunity to transform commitments into action. The UNRSF plays a critical role in supporting countries like Jamaica. through technical assistance, capacity building, and targeted investments that deliver measurable, life-saving results. In 2024, through the assistance of the UNRSF, 211 traffic police officers were trained in the digitized collection of crash data using the IMAP system, and 100 additional breathalyzers were procured for the police force. These and other ongoing efforts, in coordination with the Government of Jamaica's National Road Safety Council have contributed to the overall road fatality and collision reductions we have seen in recent years. There's been a 20% decline in road fatalities so far in 2026 compared with the corresponding period in 2025, and we remain committed to accelerating this downward trend. Jamaica fully supports the global goal of reducing road traffic deaths and injuries and looks forward to strengthening our partnership with the UNRSF to advance safer roads for all. We therefore call on Member States, our development partners, financial institutions, and the private sector to increase their investment in road safety. And I thank you in advance for the commitments and pledges that will be made today. Together, we can save lives, strengthen resilience, and build a safer world for present and future generations. I thank you.


UNRSF · Head of Secretariat · Enika Henry [48:19]:

Thank you, Ambassador Wallace. We're really pleased that Jamaica has placed its trust in the UN system to help it with its journey to improving its national road safety system, and that we are seeing the needle moving there in terms of system change, particularly as it relates to post-crash care. I would like to now invite Mr. Jean Todt, the UN Secretary-General's Special Envoy for Road Safety, to take the floor. Mr. Todt has been a relentless force behind global road safety. He has also played a very pivotal role in the establishment of the UN Road Safety Fund itself. So it's really my pleasure to give the floor to Mr. Todt. Mr. Todt, over to you.


UN · Special Envoy for Road Safety · Jean Todt [49:03]:

Thank you, Enike. Excellencies, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen, I would like to begin by recognizing France, Jamaica, and the UN Regional Commission New York Office for co-hosting the pledging conference. I would also like to commend Kyrgyzstan and Slovakia for co-facilitating this high-level meeting, and I thank the President of the UN General Assembly for championing road safety And I also thank Dr. Tedros, the head of WHO, for his presence with us this morning. We are here for a clear and urgent objective: to mobilize the resources needed to save lives. We are now in the second half of the Decade of Action for Road Safety, and we will all agree that progress must be accelerated. The UN Road Safety Fund is the only UN pooled fund dedicated exclusively to road safety. It brings together 21 UN entities to help countries with the greatest need. Every year, as it was reminded this morning, 1.2 million people die on the road and 50 million people are injured with full disability. Road crashes are the leading cause of death for children and young people age 5 to 29. 90% of these deaths occur in low- and middle-income countries. I call it a silent pandemic, and it is entirely preventable. Road crashes also cost countries around 3% of the GDP every year. In some low- and middle-income countries, the cost reaches up to 5%. The global cost exceeds $3 trillion annually, $3 trillion. It is a development crisis, a public health emergency, and a humanitarian failure. Governments have an essential responsibility, but governments cannot do this alone. The private sector has expertise, innovation, and investment that can help save lives. Many countries already have road safety plans, but most remain unfunded. Some governments say they cannot afford to contribute, but let me be direct: the cost of inaction is measured in life. For example, a quality helmet is one of the most effective road safety interventions we have. I'd describe it as a vaccine against the silent pandemic. Yet millions of people still cannot access a certified helmet because they are too expensive. Certification infrastructure barely exists. The market is flooded with substandard helmets that offer the appearance of protection without the substance. The UN Road Safety Fund is helping to close this gap. I call on every partner in this room to join that effort. This conference is a test for our collective seriousness. Governments must allocate public funds. And I thank you, France, for your support. High-income countries must integrate road safety into official development assistance. The private sector must match its statement with investment. I congratulate everyone making pledges today. Your contribution will help save lives. But today must be the beginning, but not the end. And I thank you for that.


UNRSF · Head of Secretariat · Enika Henry [52:34]:

Thank you very much. Thank you very much, Mr. Todd, for your continued engagement and support at the UN Road Safety Fund. It now gives me the pleasure to invite His Excellency Peter Lunier, the Permanent Representative of Slovakia, to deliver Slovakia's pledge to the UN Road Safety Fund. As we know, Slovakia is also the co-facilitator for this year's High-Level meeting on improving global road safety. So we're really happy that you have some time to spend with us today. The floor is yours, Ambassador.


Slovakia · Permanent Representative · Peter Lunier [53:13]:

Thank you, Madam Moderator, for the floor. Ministers, Excellencies, ladies and gentlemen, it's really a great pleasure for me to be here today, and thank you very much for inviting me to participate in this important discussion that is an integral part of a road safety agenda. Let me make a couple of brief remarks. Financing and sustained support are crucial if we are to achieve our common goal of reducing road safety and road traffic deaths and injuries, and Slovakia fully recognizes this. We also recognize that the situation differs from country to country and there is no one-size-fits-all solution. Nevertheless, what is common to all of us is that implementing measures work and save lives. As the UN Secretary-General's Special Envoy for Road Safety, Mr. Jean Todt, just mentioned, together we can stop this pandemic. SDG Target 3.6 calls for halving the number of road traffic deaths by 2030. Achieving this goal requires education, effective enforcement, and above all, adequate funding. We already have valuable instruments, including the UN Road Safety Fund. Slovakia has supported these initiatives from the very beginning, and we were among the first contributors, and we can confirm today that we will continue to contribute. We announced our pledge recently. We firmly believe that if every country contributes even a modest amount, together we can mobilize significant resources that will ultimately save lives and improve the quality of life of those most affected. At the same time, we all know that international funding alone is not enough. It must be complemented by domestic investment, and not only by governments but also by the private sector. My final point: the message is simple. Money invested in road safety is not a cost. It is an investment that delivers returns measured not only in economic terms, but most importantly, in lives saved. Thank you very much for your attention.


UNRSF · Head of Secretariat · Enika Henry [55:59]:

Thank you very much, Ambassador. It's really a good sign when you have a partner who comes back to the table to continue support, so it's a good sign of the value that you place and the trust that you place in us. So thank you very much. With this, I now invite Dr. Tedros Ghebreyesus, the Director-General of the WHO, to take the floor. The General Assembly of the UN has entrusted WHO with a key role on road safety across the UN system in close cooperation with the UN regional commissions. So this public health mandate that the WHO has is quite an essential one, of course, to the reason that we're here. So it's my pleasure to give the floor to you, Dr. Tedros. Over to you.


WHO · Director-General · Tedros Ghebreyesus [56:41]:

Thank you. Thank you, Moderator, Special Envoy John Todd, Excellencies, Ministers, Ambassadors, Heads of Delegation, dear colleagues and friends. Thank you first to my brother John for his leadership and to our colleagues at the UN Road Safety Fund for their partnership. Every year, more than 1 million people lose their lives on the world's roads, and up to 50 million more are injured. Behind each of those numbers is a name, a family, a future that was cut short or forever changed. Road traffic injuries remain the leading killer of children and young people aged 5 to 29— a generation of teachers, workers, parents and leaders lost before their time. And the burden falls hardest on those who can least afford it. More than 90% of road deaths occur in low- and middle-income countries, even though those countries have less than 60% of the world's vehicles. This is not simply a health issue, as has been said by many speakers before. It's an issue of equity, of development, and of justice. The good news: road deaths are falling. The bad news: at this pace, we will fall far short of our target, and every day of delay costs lives. Our goal is a 50% drop in deaths by 2030, but we still have a long way to go. At this midpoint in the Decade of Action for Road Safety, we must double down on delivery. The Global Plan for the Decade of Action and the political declaration that countries will adopt today chart the way forward. But those commitments will only be realized with adequate financing. We need strategic and sustainable investments in safe transport, investments that strengthen coordination across government and society. The UN Road Safety Fund has a crucial role in driving results in low- and middle-income countries. It does this by catalyzing investments in infrastructure, by strengthening road safety legislation, by making helmets and vehicle safety equipment accessible and affordable, and by improving post-crash care. This means mistakes people make on the road are less likely to cost them their lives. It means more people choosing the healthier options of walking, cycling, or public transport. This is the way to reduce road deaths and to support health, opportunity and sustainability across society. WHO is proud to stand alongside the Fund as a technical partner, providing the evidence, the guidance and the country support that turn good policy into safer roads. But evidence and guidance are not enough without resources behind them. So today I have 3 asks. First, to donor countries and partners: pledge generously and pledge predictably, so the Fund can plan for the long term, not just the next project cycle. Second, to governments: match international support with domestic investment and political will— in legislation, enforcement, and infrastructure that protects pedestrians, cyclists and motorcyclists alike. Third, to all of us, treat road safety as the health equity it is, with the same urgency we bring to other leading causes of death and disability. Investing in road safety is investing in health systems, in economics, and in the simple right of every person to get home safely. It's one of the most cost-effective investments any country can make— saving lives, reducing the burden on hospitals, and keeping families out of poverty. My thanks again to the UN Road Safety Fund for its valuable work, and I ask all of you to support it. I thank you, and back to you, moderator.


UNRSF · Head of Secretariat · Enika Henry [1:01:35]:

Dr. Tedros, thank you so much for very articulately laying out the case for support for the work that we do together, all of us here in this room. So before we close the opening segment of— opening remarks segment of this event, I will say something a little bit controversial, that there is a term that is coined where it says you save the best for last. I'm going to say that we've saved the best for last for the opening remarks speaker because we have now taking the floor the Executive Secretary of the UN Economic Commission for Europe, Tatjana Mulsion. The reason for saying that is ECE has played a critical role in the establishment, in the life, in the thriving of the UN Road Safety Fund, as well as the Special Envoy's Office, because they host us administratively in Geneva. They're very much a part of our DNA, our lifeblood, and our support for existence and our work. Over to you, Executive Secretary.


UNECE · Executive Secretary · Tatjana Mulsion [1:02:35]:

Thank you so much. Thank you, Excellencies, distinguished ministers, colleagues, ladies and gentlemen. It's really a pleasure to be today here. Let me just join the previous speaker in expressing the gratitude first of all to France, Jamaica, and also to the Special Envoy to Jean Todt, to the Regional Commission's New York office here in New York, and also to the Road Safety Fund, Neelka, to you for convening this conference. Indeed, UNICEF is the host of the UN Road Safety Fund, and we are very proud to support this important UN mechanism because the fund really connects the demand, the country demand, the UN technical expertise, and also partner financing to deliver practical results for road safety. And I also want to echo what the distinguished speaker from Slovakia mentioned, that this recognizing the urgency of these discussions to address road safety, and yes, every contribution to the UN Road Safety Fund is a contribution to saving lives. So from that perspective, UNICEF would like to join— being a pledging conference, UNICEF would like to join the pledges, and we are proud to announce our pledge, which is the Future of Road Safety Expert Dialogue Series and Vision Zero at 30 Flagship Convening. What this initiative is about: UNICEF will convene 2-3 expert exchanges drawing on the expertise of Working Parties 1 and Working Parties 29. I know for many of you in this room you might know, others might not know, but this is basically our working groups that work— experts that work on regulations for road traffic safety and for vehicle regulation. So this convening meetings of the working parties will support knowledge sharing and practical implementation of road safety solutions. There'll be 4 priority areas: emerging technology and automation. I think you all agree this is is a very important aspect to address road safety. Motorcycle and two-wheeler safety. Vehicle occupant safety and behavioural enforcement, a very complex one where we need a lot of partnerships of all of those at this table. And micromobility and safe urban spaces sharing. So a flagship moment for this will be the initiative and contribution to the 2027 Vision Zero conference in Stockholm. UNICEF looks forward to working with interested partners, including WHO, the Swedish and US Vision Zero Academies, to explore opportunities for collaboration around this milestone. And we can organize these discussions, or discussions could focus on how countries can move from safe system commitments to practical implementation through regulatory, institutional, and policy measures, Also strengthening again partnerships with national and local implementation actors. So once again, through these working parties, UNICEF will contribute with expertise on vehicle safety technologies, vehicle regulation, road user behavior, traffic rules, and legal frameworks that can help countries operationalize their safe system approach. And this pledge also recognizing the unmet demand by low- and middle-income countries. Cambodia's recent accession to our vehicle regulation and rules, and also the keen interest from Kenya to follow suit, attest to countries' desire to use UN safety regulations to save lives. Taking a step back, UN Road Safety Fund-supported projects help translate this instruments, UN instruments, into national results. Stronger legal frameworks, safer helmets— you have mentioned, all of you, about this— safer vehicles, improved data, and better protection for vulnerable road users. The Safe and Affordable Helmets Initiative, which was highlighted already today, is really a powerful example. And as I know Jean and also Dr. Treadras like to say helmets can act as a vaccine against road death for motorcyclists, but only when they are safe, yes, affordable, certified, and actually used, not only, you know, for visibility. So with more resources, we can do much more, and UNICEF therefore calls on everyone, on partners, on government, on private sector, to increase support to the UN Road Safety Fund. And as we move toward 2030, we have to match this ambition that we have around this table with resources. Thank you so much. Thank you once again to both Taneka, but especially for you, Jean, for leading and giving us the energy and the will to move ahead. Thank you so much.


UNRSF · Head of Secretariat · Enika Henry [1:07:42]:

Thank you very much, Tatiana. As we heard earlier today, the UN Road Safety Fund is the only UN pooled fund on this issue of road safety. It's quite important that with the mandate of building capacity and delivering technical assistance, we have as many partners as possible helping us with that mission and that objective. We're really appreciative of this pledge that UNEP has just made. So we've just now come to the end of the opening remarks segment. Before transitioning into setting the scene and moving on to the multi-stakeholder pledges, I will ask you to kindly take a look at my colleague here with the camera so we can have a good shot of everyone making eye contact with the camera. So you let us know when you're finished snapping.


Alexandra [1:08:28]:

Okay.


UNRSF · Head of Secretariat · Enika Henry [1:08:48]:

Okay, perfect. Thank you very much, Alexandra. So that was our family photo, very efficient. I will now move into setting a little bit the scene on the UN Road Safety Fund. I will— is my presentation up and good to go? Fantastic, thank you. So what I'd like to do is just present a little bit on background on the UN Road Safety Fund, where we have come from, what we've been doing, and where we're looking to go next. So with this slide, what you can see here is that since Since 2018, when the fund was established, we have since delivered 56 projects in over 100 countries. We have worked with and in over 88 municipalities to strengthen their road safety systems. And today, we have capitalized just a little bit over $39 million to do the work that we've been mandated to do. For every dollar that was invested in projects in the 2024 call for proposals, we managed to leverage US$1.37 in additional financing. This is just some quick numbers to see the fund at a glance. If we go to the next slide. What we want to highlight here is that, in spite of the relatively modest capitalization of the fund, We do have a global reach. We are working in 5 regions: Europe and Central Asia, Arab region, Latin America and the Caribbean, Africa, and Asia and the Pacific. You can't really read them, but if you can, as reflected in the countries listed here on the screen, the Fund is really acting and is present in the places where the burden of road debts is the heaviest. This is also where the capacity to address this issue is often wanting and lacking. If we go to the next slide here, what we want to highlight for you is that there is no such thing as the UN Road Safety Fund acting alone. That doesn't exist. The Fund is really a compilation of the partners that you see reflected on the screen. We have We have over 20 UN agencies and civil society organizations that are implementing and helping to work with countries to design the proposals and the projects that we eventually fund and support. And also, on the other side of that, we do have our donors from member states and the private sector who are providing the funding to make the work possible. You can't see them all, but I just want to say that we are really proud to count the European Commission, France, Germany, Luxembourg, Qatar, among the major country donors that we have, as well as from the private sector, FIA Foundation, Michelin Corporate Foundation. We also have Autoliv and Honda, who are among the private sector funders, including Pirelli, who have been really strong supporters for our work, and we just want to acknowledge that. We do have our annual report on this— on the table and also online, so people, you can get most of this information at your fingertips, whether it's digitally or on paper. But just allow me to highlight a few more things about the Fund here. The UNRSF is delivering coordinated technical assistance to countries through its 5 Pathways to Impact. which are aligned with the Safe System Approach, and they're listed on the far left: high-risk factors, safer vehicles, national road safety systems. We're also working on safer and greener streets, and we heard earlier that we're also tackling emergency care systems. Over the next 5 years, for this remaining part of the decade, the UNRSF will focus its resources where it can deliver the greatest and most sustained impact, supporting system-level changes in low- and middle-income countries. That is the focus. And within that architecture, we do have 2 tracks. The first one is the flagship initiatives, and these are the programs that have demonstrated really strong results and that they're being scaled across multiple countries and sometimes multiple regions. Oftentimes, once our project ends, this work is continuing without our direct funding. So it's triggering, it's catalyzing action beyond the project that we are funding. And then we also have our catalytic track. And these are lower-hanging fruits, smaller envelopes of funding that, through technical assistance and capacity building that we can provide, they can still unlock some system-level changes. And both of these tracks matter because scale without a pipeline of proven catalytic ideas eventually runs dry. And then we also need the catalytic ideas to have somewhere to grow so that they can reach as many people as possible. If you go to the next slide, I'll just share a couple of concrete examples about what is this system-level change that has been referred to earlier. So, as we look at the first pathway to impact, which is around addressing high high-risk factors. Our work targets the interventions that have the greatest impact on road deaths and injuries, such as helmets, which you've heard a little bit about already, child restraints, as well as motorcycle safety, which is also a very popular topic, not for good reasons. Helmet use in Rwanda was already close to universal, but when we looked closer, and thanks to also very strong inputs from the Special Envoy's Office and the Special Envoy himself, we saw that the helmets that were in circulation in Rwanda were offering limited real protection. There was no quality standards, there were no testing capacity, no certification system. And that finding that we came across, it was really the impetus for us funding work in Rwanda And so, through a UNRWA-funded project, we brought together a coalition of partners which included the UN Economic Commission of Africa, the UN Economic Commission of Europe, the Rwanda Standard Board, the Rwanda Inspectorate and Consumer Protection Authority, various ministries of government, the University of Rwanda, the Rwanda National Police, and civil society, which included Healthy People Rwanda and the FIA Foundation itself. And so this coalition worked together to deliver a system-level solution. With UNRSF funding, Rwanda adopted the national helmet standard RS576, which is aligned with the UN Regulation 2205. And later, with financing from the FIA Foundation, Africa's first helmet testing and certification laboratory is now operational at the Rwanda Standards And new import regulations aligned with UN standards now require certification of helmets entering the market against the standard that we helped the country to put into place. In Jordan, the UNRCEF project focused on child restraint use, focused on increasing seatbelt use and child restraint in the country, focusing mostly on enforcement but also on raising public awareness. Activities that we had in that project included a nationwide awareness campaign and various, various campaigns. There was legal reform advocacy. There was hands-on training with the law enforcement officers. There was actual changes in the legislative framework. As a result, child restraint use increased by 10%, and it's now mandated by national traffic law. For all children under the age of 4 to be wearing the restraints. In Latin America, we have 5 countries that we've been working on— working with: Argentina, Belize, Colombia, Mexico, and Paraguay. All 5 agreed the first-ever coordinated regional motorcycle safety legislative roadmap. So we're making some headway in countries as it relates to some of these high-risk factors. These are just some examples. If you move to the next slide, you can see a set of results as it relates to safer vehicles. We want to highlight that from a program that we began in West Africa, coupled with some really intensive global advocacy from the UN, particularly UN Environment Program, we saw that there was some some influence in the decision of the European Union to introduce mandatory control, quality controls on the vehicles exported to developing markets. So this is really, really helpful when we consider that there is a problem with the exportation and importation of used vehicles that are below safety standards. And what the European Union decided, Japan, US, United Kingdom, the Republic of Korea, they're also now discussing as well. And this is a part of a bigger discussion that the UN is having on used vehicles. So we're happy that the project has a part to play in a wider sort of policy shift, even among developed countries. On a global level, 30 countries have now aligned regulations on used vehicle safety standards. This includes 17 African countries that have adopted Euro 6 emission, and safety standards for used vehicle imports, with further countries in Asia and Latin America improving their own vehicle safety and environmental performance. And in Southeast Asia, we have Malaysia and the Philippines and Vietnam. The policymakers there are taking regulatory action as it relates to anti-lock braking systems, which is a technology that can reduce fatal motor crashes— motorcycle crashes by up to 31%. So that work is ongoing in the country. If we look at what we're doing with the national road safety systems, in Brazil, for example, the catalytic UNRSF funding helped to unlock up to $1.5 billion in government financing for PRISMA, which is the Brazilian National Crash Data System. Through our work and what it has helped to leverage, this PRISMA system is now connecting data across 3 federal agencies, which covers over— well, almost 80,000 kilometers of federal highway. If we look at what's happening in India, there are 4 state governments there that we have supported, and they have now endorsed new district road safety action plans, which are aligned with UN standards. Covering their population, which is exceeding 200 million people. So setting a framework that we can have safer roads for their population. There's also been some additional 40 districts in Rajasthan which are institutionalizing road safety planning and accountability. Road safety investment cases— this is a methodology that was piloted in Zambia about 2 or 3 years ago. And since then has been applied in 8 countries, self-funded. We have Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and Tunisia, as well as UAE, all of which have replicated this road safety investment methodology to better understand where are the costs really of the road crashes and where are the interventions that would yield the highest level of return on investment. for the countries. This is something that we're also very pleased with, that countries are seeing value in some of the global public goods that the Fund is putting out there. If we go to the next slide. Safer and greener streets. Here, what we want to highlight is that our work is connecting road safety to the issues around sustainability, around inclusiveness, and urban mobility. We have, for example, launched, through the help of UN-Habitat, a global alliance of cities focused on road safety, and we have, you know, over 15 countries that are very actively participating in that program. We are already seeing some reduction in cities in Kenya in terms of fatality— road crash fatalities, and we're seeing that a number of countries, including Mozambique, Nigeria, Rwanda, are taking decisions, policies, strategies as it relates to cycling, as it relates to new road designs. So really pleased with the work that we're doing in terms of working with local governments on improving road safety. In Ethiopia, we have the government committing over 3,000 kilometers of walking and cycling infrastructure across 69 cities. In their 10-year transport plan. If we look at Central Asia, Kyrgyzstan, they have just recently actually adopted a national safe and inclusive road design policy, which is aligned with UN standards, and this was formally adopted by ministerial order. So this is progress towards setting really the framework for improving road design in the country, and we have other countries that are following suit. Tajikistan and Uzbekistan are also preparing similar policy documents. If we go to the last slide on emergency care, what we want to highlight there is that through our support on emergency post-crash response, we can see that here in 9 countries in the Americas, we've trained already just under 1,000 first responders. Costa Rica, Mexico, and Colombia have also actually committed that they will continue this training through their own domestic budgets to sustain that work beyond the life of the project. In Tanzania, we supported the country's first national trauma registry, capturing over 2,000 trauma cases across 11 hospital sites through its first standardized digital trauma data system. So introducing this trauma data system, which didn't exist before, to really help with those critical moments on the post-crash care response. We also have other results in Bangladesh, for example, where we helped the country to set up a 24/7 help hotline for road crash victims. So these examples, from Rwanda to Jordan to Brazil to Kyrgyzstan, they show that, you know, even with limited funding, policy change can happen, and it can happen, you know, within 1 year, within 2 years. It's not impossible. It's not an easy task, but it's one that through partnership we're making some headways. But as we heard earlier, it's good to have the policy frameworks in place, the legislation in place, enforcement being boosted up, but we do need, you know, the man and the woman and the child in the street actually taking the action as well to to do their part to keep safe. And I think this is probably most true for helmets, because no matter what we can do with helmet standards and what making it mandatory, we really do need riders and passengers to be wearing helmets. But there are some challenges to that that we're well aware of. So if we go to the next slide. What we've been discussing at the UN Road Safety Fund is how do we help to, you know, push forward this, this work on making helmets safer and safe and affordable for the people on the, on the streets. We believe in partnership because a problem as complex as helmet safety cannot be solved any other way. Regulation and enforcement, they do matter, but they can only take us so far. And so underneath all of that, we have some harder questions to ask, like Do riders and their passengers know that the wrong helmet can actually be the difference between life and death? You know, what can we do on public awareness and education, which is something that Special Envoy talks about a lot? How do we educate the people on the streets? And also, are the helmets actually available? Are they available on the market? Are they affordable in the countries for the people that need them the most? So these are some of the questions that we want to tackle. together in partnership. If we go to the next slide, for the first— well, it's very small, but I'll walk you through it. But for the first time, the UN Road Safety Fund is really prepared to allocate as much as $2 million to any one single objective, and in this case, launching a global call for safe and affordable helmets. The rise in motorcycle deaths over the last decade demands that we really do pay attention to this issue. And, you know, Mr. Todd, for several years now, has actually been working on safe and affordable helmets from an advocacy point of view, building partnerships around that. And now the UN Road Safety Fund really wants to get behind that through— from the programmatic perspective. So this is something that we will be working towards in our next call for proposals. The details still need to be refined.

Thank you.

defined. The partnerships still need to be defined, but this is definitely the direction that we are taking in support of this very important topic of helmet safety. What I want to highlight that you can't probably see very well, at least I can't, is that we want to also pay attention to the financing issue. How can we create some business opportunities around helmet to aid it being more accessible and more affordable. So looking at local production, looking at local distribution, looking at market surveillance, talking to governments about lowering tariff barriers if we do need to import. So the whole issue around domestic financing and revenue generation opportunities around helmet safety will be part of what we want to do with the Safe and Affordable Helmets Initiative going forward. in addition to our traditional work of harmonization of laws and regulations, looking at standards and certification and so on, and education. So, I think with this, I will close. I really just wanted to thank everyone for the participation of the opening remarks segment so far. We are now going to go into the multi-stakeholder pledges segment, and so, With that, I will kindly ask that we turn our direction to Morocco. I will ask His Excellency Abdessamad Kayou, who is also— he's Minister of Transport and Logistics of Morocco, but he's also the Chair of the UN Road Safety Fund Advisory Board. We're really pleased that Minister Kayou is here with us and very much looking forward to Minister Kayyoub, the floor is yours.


Morocco · Minister of Transport and Logistics · Abdessamad Kayou [1:28:19]:

Thank you very much, Nika Henry. Thank you for your presentation, a very informative presentation. Ladies and gentlemen, ministers, WHO Secretary-General Jean Todt, our dear friend, Dear ministers, dear invitees, it is a major honor for me to participate in this, um, contributors to the United Nations Fund for Road Safety. I would like to thank the Special Envoy of the Secretary-General of the UN for Road Safety, Mr. Jean Todt. Thank you for having organized this conference together with France and Jamaica and the New York office of the Regional Commissions of the United Nations. Mr. Toth's leadership have enabled us to maintain road safety within the priorities at the international level. I would like to thank the World Health Organization led by Dr. Tedros for WHO. Road safety is question of public health. Morocco entirely agrees. For Morocco, road safety is an important element of its sustainable efforts. Morocco is proud to be a partner of the United Nations Fund for Road Safety, faithful partner. We are a member of the Advisory Council for the Fund. We will continue to support the mission of the fund, which is save human lives thanks to international cooperation. During the 4th Ministerial Conference for Road Safety, which was held in Marrakesh in February 2025, Morocco organized the High-Level Forum for Donors for the United Nations Fund for Road Safety, UNRSF. And Morocco was proud to contribute to this fund. We have launched an international prize, Mohammed VI, for road safety, which was shared by WHO and the United Nations. This prize is a manifestation of the conviction of Morocco of the essential role of the fund for to help projects for road safety, which saves human lives. And I subscribe to the proposals of the French minister, and I also endorse Jean Todt's proposals. The conference today, it does not only deal with financial contributions. We must work together to save more human lives. I encourage member states and partners to make commitments today, and it should be the starting point of a reinforcement of our cooperation and common action. Um, motorcycle riders are among the most vulnerable users of roads, and so Morocco has made safety for motorcycle riders a national priority during the Marrakesh Conference, where there were more than 90 ministers in charge of road safety and transportation. We have created a village, an itinerant village for road safety to promote the use of the helmet and so that motorcycle riders can receive helmets. Constant action for our part. We have announced that each new motorcycle sold in Morocco would be delivered with 2 certified helmets to protect the rider— the driver and the passenger. Morocco will continue to work in cooperation with the United Nations Fund for Road Safety, the World Health Organization, and all our partners to develop the use of helmets and improve safety of motorcycle riders in our region and beyond. For this program, for the next 4 years, Morocco has programmed about $1 billion in favor of the road safety program with our agency, Narsac, which is in charge of road safety, in partnership with all the municipalities, the regions, the territorial districts, because for us in Morocco, we believe that road safety It's not only the business of a minister or the government, but every single sector, and especially the elected officials. The transformation of our commitments in concrete measures to save lives and to make our roads safer is essential. Thank you for your attention.


UNRSF · Head of Secretariat · Enika Henry [1:33:23]:

Thank you, Minister, for your remarks. We really appreciate the the strong support for Morocco, but also the leadership that Morocco is providing on this important topic of road safety. I would like now to give the floor to the State Secretary at the Ministry of Transport of Slovenia, Mr. Damijan Jaklin. The floor is yours.


Slovenia · State Secretary · Damijan Jaklin [1:33:52]:

Thank you.

Excellencies, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen, It's a great honour to address you today and to be part of this important event. Allow me to begin by expressing my sincere appreciation to the UN Secretary-General's Special Envoy for Road Safety, Mr. Jean Todt, for his extraordinary lifelong dedication and unwavering commitment to achieving and advancing global road safety goals.

Thank you, Mr. Todt.

Thank you, Mr. President. As a member of the Advisory Board of the UN Nations Road Safety Fund, Slovenia is proud to support the Fund's mission by promoting greater awareness of its work, its system-based approach, and the tangible results it's already delivering across Africa, Asia, and Latin America. Slovenia remains firmly committed to contributing to to the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. We have made a long way already. But our job is never finished. Let me share a few of our simple and yet most efficient measures. First, promoting zero tolerance for alcohol use behind the wheel. We have a 0.0% blood alcohol limit for novice and professional drivers. Combined with strict enforcement and strong awareness campaigns, this policy has significantly reduced alcohol-related crashes. Second, mandatory helmets and protective gear. All cyclists and e-scooter drivers under 18 and motorcyclists must wear helmets. Education and enforcement go hand in hand here. And as a result, severe head injuries have decreased. We therefore strongly support Mr. Todd's Safe and Affordable Helmets initiative. Third, speed management. We introduced fair penalties, a graduated fine system, and more speed cameras. These measures have led directly to fewer speed-related fatalities. I realize that some measures can be difficult and unpopular, but they must be made. Slovenia has valuable experience, expertise and good practices to share. Through the UN Road Safety Fund, this knowledge can reach countries and communities where it can make the greatest difference. What makes this found unique is its ability to bring partners together around solutions that work. Many of these are measures that Slovenia has already successfully implemented over the years, and we know from our own experience that lasting progress is only possible through cooperation, commitment, and persistence. We warmly welcome the pledges made today and look forward to seeing them translating into concrete action. Dear partners, every contribution matters, every partnership matters, and every life saved matters. Let us continue working together to make safe mobility a reality for all and everywhere.

Thank you.


UNRSF · Head of Secretariat · Enika Henry [1:37:20]:

Thank you so much. Slovenia is one of our member state donors and also advisory board members, so we do enjoy a very good relationship with Slovenia. And I also know they work closely with Mr. Todd's office as well. So, thank you very much for your continued support. Now, our next speaker is the Assistant Secretary-General and Executive Secretary— Executive Director, sorry, of UNITAR, Ms. Michelle Gail Madonna. Michelle, the floor is yours.


UNITAR · Executive Director · Michelle Gail Madonna [1:37:53]:

Thank you, Chair. Honourable Ministers, Excellencies, UN Special Envoy of the Secretary-General Jean Todt, partners, friends. I would like to first just express my sincere gratitude to the governments of France and Jamaica, to the UN Secretary-General Special Envoy, and to the Regional Commission office in New York for co-hosting this high-level meeting and for drawing renewed attention to Sustainable Development Goal targets 3.6 and 11.2 at this critical moment. With only a few years remaining until 2030, we must significantly accelerate efforts to achieve our shared target of halving road traffic deaths and injuries. We have heard this morning the dark data— more than a million people losing their lives each year on the world's roads, millions more suffering injuries, many of those resulting in lifelong disability— and that it is the leading cause of death among children and young people. Speakers also have stressed this morning the immeasurable human cost, and beyond the tragic loss of life, road crashes place enormous burdens on families, communities, health systems, and economies, costing many countries, as the Special Envoy indicated, an estimated 3% of GDP. What is crucial about all of this is that this is preventable. We had a clear target set in 2020 to meet in terms of halving road traffic deaths and injuries, we missed that target. We now have a chance with a 4-year roadway to 2030, and we hope that this high-level meeting and partnership pledging conference will be an opportunity for us to scale up and step up our efforts. This meeting provides a valuable opportunity to mobilize needed financing to strengthen the partnerships across societies and across sectors, and also to accelerate implementation of the global plan of the Decade of Action for Road Safety. Investment in road safety makes sense, and the benefits of that success, as we've heard, extend far beyond safer transport to the impacts on healthcare, on the economy, And on more sustainable and inclusive mobility systems. At Unitar, road safety is a strategic priority, therefore, and through our Road Safety Global Training Initiative, we train thousands of beneficiaries every year across the key pillars of the Global Plan. This is our contribution to a culture of responsible road use, as stated by the Minister. are from Jamaica. By combining innovative learning approaches with practical capacity building, we support institutions and individuals in moving beyond compliance toward the achievement of Vision Zero. Our work is grounded in partnerships that bring together governments, the private sector, academia, and civil society organizations alongside a dedicated road safety community of practice and a global network of locally based training centers. Together, we work towards a common purpose: strengthen capacities, supporting evidence-based interventions and amplifying the impact of road safety improvements at local, national, and global levels. We count on increased investment to scale up and accelerate this work. UNITAR's pledge is to scale up learning and capacity development, to strengthen the culture for responsible use, to strengthen governance, and to strengthen data and analytics in this area. UNITAR is pleased, therefore, to contribute with the creation of the UN Road Safety Lab. This lab, built in partnership with the Road Safety Fund and York University in Canada, will serve as a digital hub bringing together the collective knowledge of 27 UN Road Safety Fund partners. It will provide structured access to trusted road safety knowledge products and learning resources. At its launch today, the Lab provides access to 142 knowledge resources, tools, and training courses from 18 partners, together with information on 99 projects, creating a rich and practical repository of road safety expertise. The lab is an interactive knowledge and action platform supported by AI-enabled knowledge solutions designed to transform knowledge into practical results. It is built on 2 complementary training approaches designed to maximize the use of road safety knowledge by transforming resources into practical and action actionable outputs. It includes a road safety conversational knowledge assistant which helps users easily search, understand, and learn from the lab's resources through natural language interaction. And in the coming months, we'll also feature a road safety AI agent to support stakeholders in carrying out practical tasks in using the lab knowledge base, such as developing road safety strategies, developing standards, etc., drawing from a secure, safe, well-cited database. Together, the UN Road Safety Fund— with the UN Road Safety Fund, I thank all partners for their contributions to this lab and invite you to continue sharing knowledge products to further enrich this resource. I am confident that this collective effort will strengthen learning, foster collaboration, and help translate evidence into action. In closing, allow me to thank Special Envoy Jean Todt for his remarkable leadership over these many years, and Ineke, the Chair of the Road Safety Fund, for convening this important gathering and supporting the multi-partner initiatives that are helping to realize a world where roads are safe for for every road user everywhere. We at UNITAR, we remain fully committed to this journey and will contribute to being an active partner through 2030 and beyond.


UNRSF · Head of Secretariat · Enika Henry [1:44:29]:

Thank you. Thank you very much. This pledge from UNITAR is most welcome. As I said earlier, the mandate of delivering technical assistance and building capacity is one that needs to be shouldered by all, and this important resource is going to be able to provide member states primarily, policymakers primarily, but also practitioners and other stakeholders with a more centralized repository, but beyond that, a tool that would enable them to better understand the information that we have available from the UN system and from our UN system partners. So, thank you again so much for that. I will now give the floor to UN Women. It's my pleasure to invite Catarina Carvalho, the Chief of the Intergovernmental Support Section at UN Women, to take the floor, please.


UN Women · Chief, Intergovernmental Support Section · Catarina Carvalho [1:45:31]:

Thank you so much, Madam Chair, Ministers, Excellencies, UN agencies, global and national women's rights organizations, and other partners. Dear friends, let me start by thanking the governments of Jamaica, France, the UN Road Safety Fund, and the UN Secretary-General's Envoy for Road Safety for organizing this important meeting. UN Women is pleased to participate as a partner in the UN Road Safety Fund and as a member and advisor in the Group of Friends of the United Nations Secretary-General's Special Envoy for Road Safety. UN Women calls attention to the urgent need to ensure comprehensive gender-responsive approaches to road safety, noting the important role that local and regional governments also play, being closest to the population, and their important work in urban planning, infrastructure, climate, and safe transportation with women and girls. Gender crosscuts many road safety areas of the Decade of Action for Road Safety 2021-2030. 2030, whether in management and governments, where representation in all sectors matters, and it matters deeply in placing issues on creating safe space for women in the transportation and other sectors, including in key leadership and decision-making roles, or being intentional about creating space to inform planning of safer road environments for grassroots women, those working on roads, those collecting rubbish on streets, girls walking to school, those traveling through the city on bikes, walking, or using public transportation. It also includes investing in data that demonstrates the impacts on women, children, youth, and communities in post-crash. Women face much higher risks when crashes happen, as they experience injuries as passengers in cars, or as pedestrians on roads. There may be many other costs related to unequal care responsibilities, health, mobility, mental health, lost opportunities to women's economic empowerment, and heightening risks to violence, just to name a few. At UN Women, we continue to see the power of local action through the Safe Cities and Safe Public Spaces Global Initiative. This work includes supporting safe public spaces, including a focus on safe and sustainable public transport. UN Women is pleased to make the following pledges: share results and lessons learned in implementing safe and sustainable transportation initiatives with a gender-responsive approach, for example, through the UN partners of the UN Road Safety Fund; help to inform a direct theme on gender equality and road safety within a future UNRSF call for proposals. Explore co-sponsoring with UNRSF and other partners virtual and/or in-person strategic multi-stakeholder dialogues on gender and road safety in order to push this issue forward. UN Women stands ready to work with partners to advance a more holistic approach where gender can be placed at the center of UN road safety. I thank you.


UNRSF · Head of Secretariat · Enika Henry [1:48:56]:

Thank you very much. Our objective is to obtain safe and sustainable road safety and mobility, and I think that, of course, we cannot achieve the sustainability aspect without inclusiveness and, of course, without looking at the gender perspective. So, I really appreciate that you are here today to make that pledge. Now, I would like to give the floor to His Excellency Karoli Martin Ngoga, from the Permanent Representative of Rwanda. Ambassador, the floor is yours.


Rwanda · Permanent Representative · Karoli Martin Ngoga [1:49:37]:

Thank you very much. Thank you, Chair. Thank you, Mr. President. Let me start off by saying that you actually more eloquently presented what Rwanda has been able to achieve, and I don't think I will be able to do a lot more than what you have already done, and I thank you for that. And I thank all the partners around the table that have helped Rwanda and others to work together to achieve the modest accomplishments that we have registered so far, and we are here to emphasize that, to emphasize partnerships and working together for us to be able to achieve our goals. So I join those who spoke before me in emphasizing that road safety is not simply a transport issue. It is a development issue, a public health issue, a human security issue, and a governance priority. Excellencies, Rwanda appreciates the valuable support of the United Nations Road Safety Fund in advancing our national road safety efforts. For Rwanda, road safety is a national priority because it saves lives, it strengthens public health, and it contributes to development. Over the years, Rwanda has pursued a comprehensive approach to road safety, anchored in strong political leadership, evidence-based policymaking, and close collaboration among government institutions, law enforcement agencies, the health sector, civil society, and development partners. We have strengthened road safety registration, enhanced enforcement of traffic regulations, invested in safer infrastructure, and expanded public awareness campaigns that promote responsible road use. We have introduced a combined strict technological enforcement, logistics updates, and comprehensive public education. To mention some, we have introduced automated speed enforcement with 500 cameras across the country, digital enforcement Digital enforcement cameras and trailers. We have introduced mandatory speed governors and digital traffic registration to govern merit and demerit billing and oversight of driving schools. We have Gerayo Amahoro campaign. Gerayo Amahoro in Kinyarwanda means get there safe.

Yes.

where you're going. We have a Giraya Mahoro campaign, which is a long-term nationwide road safety campaign targeting vulnerable road users. We have a mandatory vehicle inspection policy and have put in place well-equipped vehicle inspection centers. With the support of the United Nations Road Safety Fund and its partners, Rwanda has established its first motorcycle helmet testing laboratory, significantly strengthening our capacity to verify helmet quality, enforce national safety standards, and remove substandard helmets from the market. This practical investment provides greater protection for motorcycle riders and passengers and demonstrates how targeted technical assistance can translate into tangible, life-saving Finally, we have a very strict enforcement policy— enforcement of seatbelt wearing, helmets wearing, and blood alcohol testing with appropriate penalties against offenders. I have a particular bias with enforcement because I am a former prosecutor. Our experience shows that investment in national capacity, quality standards, and technical expertise delivers lasting road safety benefits. It also demonstrates that the value of international partnerships— it also demonstrates the value of international partnerships in helping countries implement practical evidence-based solutions. Excellencies, as we advance the second decade of action for road safety, 2021-2030, Rwanda supports continued investment in the United Nations Road Safety Fund and stronger international cooperation to expand proven initiatives, build national capacity, and accelerate progress towards our shared goal of reducing road traffic deaths and injuries by at least 50% by 2030. The roadmap is clear and the solutions are known. What is needed now is sustained partnership and collective resolve to turn our shared commitment into measurable results. I thank you very much for your attention.


UNRSF · Head of Secretariat · Enika Henry [1:54:41]:

Thank you very much, Ambassador. Ladies and gentlemen, now we will move into hearing statements from our private sector partners. This is a very important cohort for the UN Road Safety Fund. It's very unusual for a UN fund to be largely financed and funded by private sector, so we really do appreciate the private sector showing up for this issue and showing up in partnership with the UN. So without further ado, it's my pleasure to give the floor to Mr. Jordi Lombardi, who is the Executive Vice President and senior technical advisor to the CEO of Autoliv. Jordi, the floor is yours.


Autoliv · Executive Vice President; Senior Technical Advisor to the CEO · Jordi Lombardi [1:55:28]:

Yes.

Thank you for inviting us to be representing our company, Autoliv, here. For the ones that don't know, Autoliv is a 70-plus-year-old company focusing on road safety, on innovation. We have been innovating in that segment for the last 7 23 years right now. And our vision has been always save lives. But in the last 5 years, we changed the vision and we put save more lives. Why? Because all the analysis shows that more than 50% of the fatalities occur outside of the car. So in the last 30, 40 years, you have seen a big development on safety on the cars. Every single car today has seat belts.

Yes.

The majority have airbags, but there is pedestrians that are hit by cars, there is motorcycle safety on the rider that we are focusing on that at this moment on the forefront of the innovation. In the forefront of the innovation also, we are working a lot on the gender. Size matters. It's not the same to restrain a person that weighs 50 kilos than another person that weighs 90 or 100 kilos, and today the cars are even in the developed countries are not fitting that need very well. Said that, when we analyzed what's the problem, I remember talking to Jan Todt here and said, hey, this is nice that you are trying to improve on that segment, but in many places in the world, the problem is basic. It's using a helmet that is glass. It breaks. In many places in the world, the use of seatbelts is not regular. Our analysis shows that if people were using the seatbelts that already exist in the car, around 150,000 lives will be saved automatically. And this does not require more investment in the car, it requires education, enforcement, basically all the elements that we have shared today. To have solutions, we need to work as a system approach. And I think that here is where the United Nations Road Safety Fund has a big say because you are putting together the needs in the different countries together with the technology and the different partners that I hope will make this a success. We started our collaboration in 2022, I think, and today the examples that you have brought, Anneke, is what motivates us continue, and I think by now we have already confirmed our extension of our partnership for the next 2 years, 2027 and 2028. And when we see the benefits of the return on investment on the projects that we have collaborated here, I think it is a highly motivation for us to go further. For us, there are some targets here. One is the use of seatbelts. use of seatbelts can give real results really soon. And we are partnering here with anybody who has the same mission, like your fund, like Global NCAP, like other institutions that can create that culture. Jan Todt brought the initiative on the helmets. Come on, the helmet is the seatbelt of the motorbike, it's the basic element. You can make a significant step change without going to high-tech technology. So we sit down together and say, well, we are going to do an initiative here. That was to provide helmets to our employees in countries where they travel by motorcycle. And this has been a learning curve. So if we can give lessons learned to do it better, but we did the— we gave these helmets to our employees and then we test them because Jan said, be careful because even though they are certified on the label, Let's make sure. Oh my gosh, we test them. They fail. It's the first time I saw a recall on helmets in an emerging country, and we did it. And internally, that creates a lot of stress because you need to collect helmets. And I think it was very well summarized here. It's not only the helmet to reinforce the regulations that people need to wear helmets. The helmets need to be safe. So laboratories are necessary. and all the ecosystem that goes around. We have created a capacity to test helmets, so if somebody needs support on that, because, for example, now we are in the plan to provide helmets to our employees in Brazil and Mexico. And the first step now, we don't want to do recalls anymore. We are going to test them before to place the big orders. Simple advices like this can save time and elements. I think that what I said is, this is in our DNA, in our company. We like to save more lives. And collaboration also with some low-income countries or medium-income countries has been really fruitful for us, for all of us. I just want to put as an example, we worked with India for 5 years. And now the cars in India, they have frontal airbags, while in the past it was only basic seat belts. This, we will see this in the statistics really soon. And this is our commitment. We focus right now in 3 main areas. It's, of course, the auto industry with innovation for what I said before, the different sizes and adaptive systems for more advanced vehicles. But also, we want to promote the use of seat belts around the world, because the seat belts are already in the cars, and this is simple. Same thing applies to commercial vehicles. Many commercial vehicles, they don't apply the rules or the legislation for cars. And this is low-hanging fruit. The technology is there. You don't need even to create more developments on that. Second is vulnerable road users and motorcycles. This is a big segment. And we don't do helmets, but we try to provide from— even from airbags on motorcycles, from wearables that inflate when you fall. And the third element I think is important, the collaboration with the United Nations Road Safety Fund to accelerate all these actions that translate on the best usage of the belts and accomplishing these goals in the different countries. Thank you.


UNRSF · Head of Secretariat · Enika Henry [2:01:57]:

Thank you so much for that statement and pledge from Autoliv. We are really happy with the partnership as well with Autoliv. We've been to you to learn from you. You've been at the UN headquarters to learn as well from how we can partner better, and you've also been supporting not only financially but also in an advisory capacity on our board. We really appreciate that relationship and we appreciate the continued support into 2027 and '28. As you mentioned, you've been partnering with us since 2022, so you are part of the family now. We are really pleased also when we have new partners coming to the table, and that's the case of the next speaker, Mr. Robert Atwell from Discovery Insure from South Africa. Robert, the floor is yours.


Discovery Insure · Robert Atwell [2:02:45]:

Thank you very much. Excellencies, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen, we are all joined here today by a common conviction. I think firstly is that road safety deserves far greater urgency and that together we can do much more to prevent road fatalities. And at Discovery Insure, road safety really isn't just a corporate responsibility, it's really central to our core purpose and our business. We are a property and casualty insurer from South Africa, a country with one of the highest road fatality rates in the world, disproportionately affecting young people and imposing a significant social and economic burden on our country. We experience this challenge every day, and that reality is what drives our commitment to creating safer roads. For more than a decade, Discovery Insurance focused on reducing road fatalities by addressing one of its biggest underlying issues, human behavior. We do this locally and with our global insurance partners. Through our Vitality Drive program, we combine behavioral science, advanced telematics, and hyper-personalized goals to measure driving behavior and encourage safer choices for our drivers. This is enabled by our shared value insurance model where clients benefit through rewards, insurers benefit through, through less severe claims, and of course society benefits benefits as a whole through safer roads and fewer accidents. Over the past 15 years, this approach has helped us build one of the largest driving behavior datasets in Africa with more than 20 billion kilometers of driving data, providing unique insights into what causes risk and importantly what reduces it. Our data demonstrates that road risk is not inevitable, but it's preventable. Vitality Drive clients reduce their accident risk by 15% within the first month of joining our program and have a 56.9% lower road fatality rate than the South African average. Over time, the impact becomes even more pronounced. Our best drivers experience nearly 50% fewer accidents and close to 40% lower accident severity than average drivers. These are not just statistics, they are lives saved, demonstrating that safer driving can be achieved at scale. But our commitment extends far beyond our own clients, and the benefits of road safety innovation should be shared more broadly across society. Through Pothole Patrol, a partnership with the public sector, we use data-driven insights to identify and repair high-risk road defects, helping to create safer roads. Since 2021, this program has repaired more than 340,000 potholes across South Africa, contributed to a 26% reduction in pothole-related claims, with benefits extending to all road users. Secondly, through the Discovery Safe Journeys to School program, we are helping to protect some of our most vulnerable passengers on our roads— our children. The program equips scholar transport operators with Discovery Insure's telematics technology and behavior change incentives, helping them become safer drivers while creating safer journeys for the learners that they transport. Today, the programme supports almost 1,000 scholar transporters across Gauteng and the Western Cape, safely transporting more than 28,000 learners to school daily. Importantly, drivers in the programme have excelled, with fewer than 1 in 5 trips having elevated driving risk events, and remarkably, there have been zero road fatalities since the inception of the programme. We have also been proud partners of the United Nations Road Safety Movement, including collaboration with the UN Secretary-General Special Envoy for Road Safety to advance awareness and action around safer roads. Our values are closely aligned with the mission of the UN Road Safety Fund, bringing together governments, civil society, and, and the private sector to accelerate and progress to save lives. Today, as part of this global movement, Discovery Insure reaffirms its commitment to supporting the global road safety agenda. We commit to advancing behavioral science, telematics, and data analytics to improve road safety outcomes at scale, to sharing insights for one of the world's largest driving behavior datasets, and to expanding partnerships that create safer drivers, safer roads, and safer pedestrians. At Discovery Insure, we are committed to using the power of behavioral science, technology, and partnership to improve road safety at scale, because every safer decision behind the wheel is an opportunity to save a life. And together, those decisions can transform the future of road safety. Thank you.


UNRSF · Head of Secretariat · Enika Henry [2:07:13]:

Thank you very much, Mr. Atwell. And now I'd like to give the floor to our speaker from Honda, Mr. Hiroki Tanaka, who is the chief engineer in the safety and Strategic Planning Department at Honda. Mr. Tanaka, the floor is yours.


Honda · Chief Engineer · Hiroki Tanaka [2:07:35]:

Thank you, Chair. Their Excellencies, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen, on behalf of Honda Motor President and CEO Toshihiro Mibe, it's a great honor for me to join you today at this United Nations Road Safety Fund Partnership Raising Conference. For Honda, Road safety is not a new commitment. It has been a core part of our corporate philosophy for decades and remains central to our vision of safety for everyone. Building on decades of commitments to road safety, Honda publicly announced its global safety targets in 2021 to reduce traffic fatalities involving Honda motorcycles and automobiles by 50% by 2030, and ultimately to achieve zero traffic collision fatalities by 2050. At that time, we also emphasized that our most critical challenge is reducing motorcycle fatalities in emerging countries, particularly in Asia. To address this challenge, at the WHO Assembly side event in Geneva this May hosted by Mr. Todd, We propose a vital concept. We emphasized that to protect lives through correct helmet use, a sustainable ecosystem is essential for our traffic society. This ecosystem must integrate 3 key elements: education and awareness, quality and access, and regulation and enforcement. Today, to To turn this vision into action, Honda is proud to announce an additional pledge that complements our existing 5-year financial commitment to the United Nations Road Safety Fund. Going beyond financial support, Honda intends to serve as an active implementation partner in Asia through 3 concrete areas of practical cooperation. First, Honda intends to engage proactively and constructively in the development of future UNRWA-supported road safety initiatives in Asia, including through participation in consortium-based proposals under the upcoming call for proposals process. Second, Honda intends to provide in-kind technical cooperation, drawing on our expertise in motorcycle safety, safety education, crash data and correct— crash data collection and analysis, and helmet ecosystem development. Through such contribution, Honda aims to support evidence-based approach to increasing the availability and effective use of safe certified helmets. Third, Honda intends to facilitate stakeholder dialogue and partnership building by hosting and supporting a working-level meeting in Asia. By bringing together UNRSF implementing organizations, regional partners, and public authorities, Honda aims to help identify opportunities for collaboration and support the development of effective future road safety projects. Through this new partnership, We are deeply honored to work alongside all of you to protect motorcycle riders in Asia and build a safer future, fully in line with our global safety slogan, Safety for Everyone. Thank you very much for your attention.


UNRSF · Head of Secretariat · Enika Henry [2:11:15]:

Thank you very much, Mr. Tanaka. Honda is a very important partner for the UN Road Safety Fund, not only from a financial perspective with our 5-year partnership arrangement, but also with this additional pledge for in-kind technical assistance, which is much appreciated. Thank you again for that. I will now pass the floor to Pirelli. We have Pirelli as one of our founding contributors to the UN Road Safety Fund, and we have by video message the Executive Chairman, Mr. Marco Provera.


Pirelli · Executive Chairman · Marco Provera [2:11:58]:

Good morning, ladies and gentlemen, and thank you for the opportunity to address you this morning. Unfortunately, I cannot join you in person. I'm here to confirm the support to the United Nations Road Safety The achievements of the Fund have been important and we continue to be strategic and all of this is thanks to the commitment of my friend Jean Todt who is able to put together institutions, governments, businesses with a common goal, with the same spirit and to push on education. in order to reduce the risk related to the road. It's our business to reduce the risk of the road. We in Pirelli make efforts every day with this purpose. We do it in sport, we do it on regular businesses, but it's an honor for us and I'm proud that our company can, can be part of this club that has the common wish to continue and to provide people with the opportunity to understand and to behave in order to reduce the risk they are taking every day. Thank you again and have a good day.


UNRSF · Head of Secretariat · Enika Henry [2:13:26]:

Thank you very much for that statement from Pirelli and pledge as well for continued support. I will now invite our next speaker to the floor. It's Mr. Fernandez de Cordova from the Public Foundation. The floor is yours, Mr. Cordova.


Public Foundation · Mr. Fernandez de Cordova [2:13:51]:

Good morning, Excellencies, distinguished guests, and partners. On behalf of the Public Foundation, Thank you for the opportunity to be here today. For over 2 years, Public has been the proud supporter of the UN Road Safety Fund. That partnership began with the launch of the 24 Seconds campaign at the Geneva International Motor Show, a global brand initiative to raise awareness and funding for the road safety in developing economies. From there, we brought that initiative to Marrakesh in 2025, hosting the first-ever Brands for Safer Roads Breakfast that gathered— brought together leaders in industry, policy, civil society to discuss motorcycle safety, which remains the leading cause of road death in the many countries the UN Road Safety Fund serves. That experience taught us something very valuable. The private sector wants to be part of this work, but the door isn't wide enough, especially for smaller businesses. So today, alongside the UN Road Safety Fund, Public is proud to announce the formal launch of the Brands for Safer Roads Alliance. This coalition is built specifically for small and medium-sized enterprises. It is an open invitation to businesses of every size, every sector who believe their operations, their supply chains, and their employees deserve safer roads. And today, Public is pledging to manage and promote this alliance going forward. That means serving as the operational and fiscal home for the alliance, supporting outreach to bring new members, and standing behind the alliance as it grows. Members of the alliance can engage directly with the Global Road safety agenda at the UN level. If your business moves people or goods, if your employees drive, commute, or operate on roads anywhere in the world, this Alliance is for you. I am proud to announce that the founding memberships are now open. Members of the Alliance can attend webinars, working groups, and form part of peer networks of like-minded businesses across sectors and regions. as well as the recognition as a formal partner of the UN Road Safety Fund. Public is honored to serve as the home of this alliance and will continue to make road safety everybody's business. Thank you.


UNRSF · Head of Secretariat · Enika Henry [2:16:27]:

Thank you, Mr. Cordova. Public Foundation has actually been a very important fiduciary partner to the UN Road Safety Fund, playing the role of the bridge between our impact and funding from private sector and from private individuals as well. We're happy that there's this new alliance that will help to bridge the gap between the smaller businesses. We have quite a number of larger businesses, so now we want to welcome the smaller businesses to the fold. With that, it's my pleasure to give the floor to one of the small businesses that has already signed up to be part of this partnership. It's Mr. Ndruva Valuru, who's the Chief Executive Officer of Kubo, to deliver Kubo's pledge as part of this Brands for Safer Roads Alliance. Kubo is a teen-led road safety initiative developing a real-time driver monitoring system to prevent distracted driving. So looking forward to your comments. Over to you.


Kubo · CEO · Dhruva Valour [2:17:28]:

Thank you. At the age of 14, I lost a friend to distracted driving. And now, at 16, I speak before you all with a startup built to solve that exact problem. Honourable Ministers of France and Jamaica, and distinguished representatives of the United Nations, good afternoon. My name is Dhruva Valour, and I'm joined by my co-founders, Gideon Mercapoli and Amoghurupati.


Speaker 41 [2:17:53]:

Hi.


Kubo · CEO · Dhruva Valour [2:17:53]:

Today, we're proud to announce our company Qubo's commitment to the brand of Safer Roads Alliance. Qubo builds AI-powered devices that detect distracted driving behaviors and deliver audible alerts at the driver to get back on track. Devices anyone can buy— parents who want to keep an eye on children, insurance companies who want to give discounts to safe drivers. We're open to the world. But today is not about a product. It's about a pledge. From the start, our goal has been really simple. It's to build distracted driving technology that feels so seamless it integrates into any driver's daily routine. Because we believe safety on the road isn't just a feature. It isn't just a privilege. It's a basic human right. The principle has carried us further than we've ever imagined. We are now successfully signing contracts with the world's biggest automotive companies like Toyota, Rivian, and Ford partnering up with the most powerful insurance companies throughout the United States. And now we just came back from SF this weekend raising $150,000 USD. And this is only the beginning. We will not stop until Kubo rides in every car, watches over every driver, and revolutionizes the space of driver safety. However, One thing is for certain: no company can change the world alone. Technology can only catch a distracted moment, but awareness can change how people drive for a lifetime. And no institution carries the reach to drive that change like the United Nations. That's why we are joining the Brand for Safer Roads Alliance, and that's why we stand so firmly behind the United Nations and the Public Foundation's mission. As a current 16-year-old revolutionizing the scene for distracted driving, people will tell you that we're young. And to be honest, they're right. We were the youngest to exhibit at CES, the world's largest tech conference, and we might be some of the youngest to speak in this room. But that's exactly my point. My generation will spend most of our lives behind the driving wheel than any generation in history. And we as CUBO refuse to inherit those unsafe roads that are leading to these catastrophic deaths. CUBO's commitment to this alliance is to ensure that distractions behind the wheel never become a family's lifelong loss. We want to keep the roads safe, and we want to help the United Nations, the Public Foundations, and the world make the roads a better place for everyone. Thank you. My name is Dhruv Vavaru, the CEO of CUBA. It's been my pleasure. And as CUBA's tagline, we like to say, stay alert and stay alive. Thank you so much.


UNRSF · Head of Secretariat · Enika Henry [2:20:48]:

Thank you. Thank you so much. Just to mention that This alliance has also some other founding members who were unable to be here today, including the World Association for Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises, as well as World Development Corporation. We're really pleased that CUBA could be here together with us and Public Foundation to announce the launch of this initiative focused on smaller businesses. With that, I would like to cede the floor to our honorable minister from the Kirgiz Republic, who has requested the floor. So, it's my pleasure to give the floor to His Excellency, Mr. Demirbek Osmanov, the Minister of Health from the Kyrgyz Republic. The floor is yours, sir.


Kyrgyzstan · Minister of Health · Demirbek Osmanov [2:21:41]:

Thank you, dear moderator, distinguished co-chairs, distinguished conference participants, ladies and gentlemen. First of all, let me express my gratitude to the governments of France and Jamaica, the United Nations Secretary-General Special Envoy for Road Safety and the New York Office of the UN Regional Commission for organizing this conference and for their consistent efforts to strengthen global partnerships in the field of road safety. For the Kyrgyz Republic, road safety is first and foremost a matter of preserving human lives, protecting public health, and ensuring sustainable development. The Kyrgyz Republic will continue its efforts to upgrade the skills of medical professionals, implement modern emergency care protocols, reduce response times, and strengthen coordination among the bodies of healthcare, internal affairs, transport, education, and road traffic, and local authorities. An equally important area is improving the system for collecting data on road traffic injuries. We welcome the new strategic phase of the Fund's operations for the period 2027-2030, which aims to expand partnerships, mobilize additional resources, and introduce advanced solutions for safe and sustainable mobility. Thank you for your attention.


UNRSF · Head of Secretariat · Enika Henry [2:23:04]:

Thank you very much. We're very pleased that we could have the Minister of Health joining us for this conversation. and also recognizing the role as co-facilitator for this high-level meeting. Thank you very much for your support in today's event. I'd like to now invite Natalie Dryson, who is Director for North America from the FIA Foundation, to take the floor. The floor is yours.


FIA Foundation · Director for North America · Natalie Dryson [2:23:31]:

Thank you.

Special Envoy, Excellencies, distinguished guests, The FIA Foundation is pleased to reaffirm our support for the UN Road Safety Fund and to express our appreciation for the important role it plays in translating commitment to action. Road safety has always been a shared endeavor. The leadership of UNRSF, together with the work of governments, the United Nations, civil society, philanthropy, and private sector like the FIA and others in this room, demonstrates what is possible when we unite around a common purpose. When the Fund was established, the FIA Foundation was very privileged to make an initial commitment of $10 million, and I remember standing up here at the front of the room with Jean Todt and others doing that. And we did it because we believed that there was a real need for a UN-based mechanism that could bring partners together around evidence-based solutions and help countries deliver interventions that save lives. It is tremendously encouraging today to see how that vision has grown. At the FIA Foundation, our priorities are very clear. We work to increase access to safe, affordable helmets, to make the journey to school safe for every child, to strengthen vehicle safety through NCAP programs, and to support the evidence advocacy, and partnerships needed to accelerate implementation of the Safe Systems approach. These priorities align very closely with the work of UNRSF, and we're already seeing the benefits. In Rwanda, our complementary investments help establish a new national helmet standard and Africa's first helmet testing laboratory. The Fund's investment in the Safe and Affordable Helmets Initiative reflects our shared commitment to ensuring that protective equipment is not only available but also meets internationally recognized standards. And the Fund is also helping countries scale proven approaches to school safety, building on tools like our partner IRAP's Star Ratings for Schools. These are the partnerships that we need more of— building on one another's strengths, connecting investments, and ensuring that evidence, policy, and implementation move forward together. This movement is growing through the commitments that are being made today by governments, international organizations, civil society, and the private sector, and every single one of your contributions matters. Every partnership strengthens our collective ability to reach the places where the need is greatest. The FII Foundation looks forward to continuing to work with UNRSF and with all of you in this room and beyond to build on the progress that we've already made, to maximize the impact of our collective investments, and most importantly, to save lives.

Thank you.


UNRSF · Head of Secretariat · Enika Henry [2:26:33]:

Thank you so much, Natalie. So now I'd like to invite to the floor Ariel Sacramento, the Director General of the Road Safety Agency in Benin. Mr. Sacramento, the floor is yours.


Benin · Director General, Road Safety Agency · Ariel Sacramento [2:26:48]:

Merci.

Madam Moderator, Head of the Secretariat of the UNRSF, Mr. Special Envoy of the Secretary-General for Road Safety, Excellencies, distinguished participants and guests. Africa has, you know, 20% of death on the road, even though it has 3% of the vehicles. And we're only a region of the world where mortality increases, where, you know, it increases in other parts of the world. According to the WHO, Benin is part of the listing. And the WHO cites our country where the countries have increased by more than 50% in the last few years. You know, what we see is that 2021, we've dedicated $1.12, you know, to this. security budget for road safety. So, and it's not just a speech. So, Excellency, we have a request and an offer. The request is that half of the resources dedicated, you know, are for sub-Saharan Africa and the area where we have the most deaths, and that the efforts are recentered on the burden and not on the aptitude to draft reports and to approach it. We have to found the epicenter and for the offer, the initiative for safe and affordable helmets. You know, regarding that, you know, we want to be a candidate as a pilot country. We are above 85% of people using helmets. What remains is the issue of the homologated quality, and here we need a break, you know, a homologation laboratory. Rwanda has built the first one in Africa, so supported by this fund. And Benin, you know, would like to become this counterpart on the west side of Africa. Ours, you know, anchored here, is, you know, near Kigali. And we want to do in the west, in Benin, what Rwanda has done in the east. You know, we provide the determination and political will. We want to bring the brick that's missing. And Mr. Special Envoy, you said that the framework is what is closest to a vaccine against road deaths. I would like to go even further. A non-homologated helmet is a fake vaccine in a way. Thank you for your attention.


UNRSF · Head of Secretariat · Enika Henry [2:29:10]:

Thank you very much. I would like to now invite Meera Naran, the Ambassador for Global NCAP, to take the floor. Ms. Naran, the floor is yours.


Global NCAP · Ambassador · Meera Naran [2:29:24]:

We're here today because we all believe in the potential of partnership to save lives. Global NCAP has seen what collaboration can catalyze in India, Africa, Latin America, and Southeast Asia. Partnerships for vehicle safety have become agents of real change, but only because they are also agents of real challenge. This means a focus on 2 things. First, holding the industry to account on vehicle safety wherever issues are found. And second, challenging the inertia and the delay in the adoption of standards that would otherwise be life-saving. The UN Global Plan includes 9 of these vehicle safety standards. From seat belts to crash avoidance technologies like ESC, AEB, and motorcycle ABS. They're proven. There's wide consensus on their benefits. So why is there still an adoption gap in their implementation? New research from Johns Hopkins commissioned by Global NCAP has put a number on what can be achieved if we fill that gap. Across the G20, half a million lives can be saved by 2030, increasing to an astonishing 2.7 million lives that could be saved by 2050. That's roughly equivalent to the number of people living and working here in Manhattan today, a city of lives saved. If we pledge anything during this week's high-level meetings at this halfway milestone in the decade of action, can it be to deliver on what we already know works? Fill the adoption gap, create the regulatory push, and in parallel, NCAPs will inform and empower consumer demand. Global NCAP knows that push-pull model can succeed, and it's committed to co-creating markets for safer vehicles with ambition, urgency, and at scale. This is Global NCAP's pledge, and it's a promise that I am proud to share in partnership with everyone in this room. Thank you.


UNRSF · Head of Secretariat · Enika Henry [2:32:00]:

Thank you very much. So, our last speaker for the segment of the multi-stakeholder pledges was actually a victim of the recent cancellation of flights over the weekend. So, Alma Faschik-Attak is from the Global Coalition for Traumatic Brain Injury, is not here, but thankfully she did share her statement with us, and Natalie Dryson from the FAA Foundation has kindly agreed to read that statement for her. So this is a statement on behalf of the Global Coalition for Traumatic Brain Injury. The floor is yours.


FIA Foundation · G4 Alliance and Global Coalition for Traumatic Brain Injury · Director for North America · Natalie Dryson [2:32:32]:

And thank you for your willingness to have me read this statement again on behalf of the G4 Alliance and the Alliance on TBIs. Honorable Moderator, Excellencies, and distinguished colleagues, thousands of people survive road crashes only to face a lifetime of of disability. For this, G4 Alliance and the Global Coalition for Traumatic Brain Injury pledge to place our collective capacity behind the UN Road Safety Fund and our shared goal of reducing road deaths and injuries by 2030. The G4 Alliance connects approximately 80 organizations across surgical, obstetric, trauma, and anesthesia care, and the Global Coalition for TBI brings focused clinical research, rehabilitation, advocacy, and lived experiences supported by 50 endorsing global organizations and 16 countries backing our proposed World Health Assembly resolution recognizing TBI as preventable, notifiable, and a chronic condition. We pledge to partner closely with the UN Road Safety Fund and country-led road safety programs through 2030. Our global networks are committed to providing policy and technical support, country engagement, capacity strengthening, data and outcome measurement, rehabilitation services, knowledge products, advocacy convenings, and mobilizing resources. Not every road injury requires surgery or another operative intervention, but many patients still need timely emergency, critical, and perioperative care, rapid assessment and resuscitation, safe procedures, and rehabilitation. These connected services determine survivability, disability, and recovery. UNRSF provides the partnership and implementation platform. G4 Alliance and the Global Coalition for TBI bring specialized post-crash expertise, global reach, and member-state relationships to translate commitments into measurable impact and accelerate progress towards the Decade of Action targets. Driven by this shared vision, let us measure progress not merely by prevented crashes, but by every person reached in time, every life saved, every disability averted, and every recovery sustained to its fullest. Thank you.


UNRSF · Head of Secretariat · Enika Henry [2:35:10]:

Thank you. So, that brings us to the close of our multi-stakeholder pledges and testimonies. Thank you so much for all of your contributions. I would now like to invite Thilmisa Hussein, Director of the UN Regional Commission's New York Office, and also co-host of this conference, to present the pledges on behalf of the other UN regional commissions who could not be here today, as well as to offer her final reflections and chart the next steps towards the 2030 target. Ms. Husain, the floor is yours.


UN Regional Commissions · Director · Thilmisa Hussein [2:35:40]:

Thank you, Madam Moderator, for your leadership. Also, Reka, for leading the UN Road Safety Fund. Excellencies, distinguished delegates, the past 2 and a half hours we have been in this room, millions of people have left their homes to run errands, drop their children, go to work, and they did so with expecting to return home safely. But you heard over and over the statistics this morning in the room, and for more than 300 of them, that expectation was never going to be fulfilled because they're not going to be returning home. That is why we came together today and that is why the commitments made here in this room matter. As we bring this Partnership Pledging Conference to a close, I would like to thank every government, private sector partner, United Nations entity, and stakeholder that has stepped forward today. Your pledges bring us closer to our shared goal of mobilizing $10.6 million to accelerate action on road safety and, more importantly, To save lives. As you heard from the head of WHO, to slash the deaths by half by 2030, we need to double our investments. Executive Secretary Tatiana called for more resources so we can do much more and save much more lives. Allow me to extend our sincere appreciation to governments of France and Jamaica for co-hosting this conference and to United Nations Secretary-General Special Envoy for Road Safety, Mr. Joan Todd, for his leadership in bringing us together around this shared objective. Executive Secretary Tatiana Molchan, the biggest champion of Road Safety Fund and Special Envoy, as you heard from the moderator as well, she presented UNECE's commitments, building on decades of leadership in developing the United Nations vehicle regulations that continue to save lives around the world. Building on UNECE's long-lasting leadership, each of the regional commissions is contributing to unique strengths. ECA in Africa is strengthening data and evidence-based policymaking. ESCAP is mobilizing ministerial leadership and regional commitments in Asia-Pacific region. ESCOA in Western Asia is integrating road safety into regional transport planning. And ECLAC in Latin America and the Caribbean is expanding access to technical knowledge and best practices. Together, the 5 regional commissions help translate global commitments into regional cooperation, national policy, and practical action. 5 regions, different strengths, one shared purpose: making every journey safer. Excellencies, distinguished delegates, that spirit of partnership has been reflected throughout today's conference. Allow me to recognize all those who stepped forward today in support of the UN Road Safety Fund, and as well as those who reaffirmed their commitments and in-kind contributions: Kingdom of Morocco, Slovenia, Rwanda, Kyrgyz Republic, and Benin, and also France and Slovak Republic. Who announced financial contributions. Allow me to also mention Autoliv, Discovery, Honda, and Peril, who reaffirmed the important role of the private sector. Across the United Nations system, WHO, UNECE, along with the 5 regional commissions, UNITAR, and UN Women, who shared their commitments and initiatives that will help advance the Global Plan for Decade of Action. Public Foundation for their announcement of the Alliance, FIA Foundation, Global NCAP, and everyone really who pledged support. Drua, you might be the youngest person in this room, you're very right, but KUBO, the bright youngsters, the role that you're playing and for your co-founders to be here is really encouraging and heartening, and I say this because I have a young son who is 14 years old, and I hope your technology will be in every car before he starts driving. Together, these pledges send a clear message: road safety is not the responsibility of one institution or one actor. It is the shared responsibility that requires governments, international organizations, private sector, foundations, civil society, and communities to work together. As we conclude today's conference, let us remember that success will not be measured by the value of today's pledges alone. It will be measured by what they deliver: safer roads, stronger institutions, better data, more effective policies, and ultimately Lives saved. With just 4 years remaining in the decade of action of road safety, today's commitments must now become tomorrow's implementation. UNECE and the Regional Commission stand ready to work alongside member states, Special Envoy, Road Safety Fund, and all partners to help turn these commitments into meaningful results on grounds. Once again, allow me to thank Special Envoy Joan Todd and the Chair of Road Safety Fund, Neka, for bringing us all together. Let us leave this room encouraged by today's commitments, but even more determined to deliver on them. I thank you.


UNRSF · Head of Secretariat · Enika Henry [2:41:45]:

Thank you very much, Thilmisa. With 2 minutes remaining, I just want to say a sincere thank you to everyone in the room, whether you spoke or not, your support is well received and much needed. So we look forward to continue working with you. Today's event allowed us to be able to collect and announce about $5.6 million worth of support. And we have another $7 million in the pipeline that is very advanced but did not get concluded in time to be announced today. So it's It's looking good from that perspective, but of course, this is just scratching the surface. With that, I will give the last 60 seconds to my Special Envoy just to give his last words of inspiration and encouragement. Thank you.


UN · Special Envoy for Road Safety · Jean Todt [2:42:36]:

Sorry.

Thank you, Enika. I have, I think, like all friends and colleagues, I enjoyed your passion. I mean, we have been hearing a lot of things we unfortunately know very well, and I think it's really time to commit by actions, actions which we can measure. I was very happy— one of my worst experiences in my life was incidentally with my wife, who just arrived, was my visit to Benin. And we had a meeting with the Minister of Transport and different members of the government, and I remember at the time I asked to go to the hospital. And we arrived next day to the hospital. We were also together with the wife of the French ambassador. And we found a room with about 30 bodies lying on the floor. So I asked, what is that? It's road safety victims of the day and we are waiting for some money before we start working on them. And I must say it's probably one of my most terrible experiences I had. So I was very happy to hear your commitment to make things changing and it's one example out of so many. I mean, the number was said 90% of the victims are occurring in low and middle income countries for only 3% of the number of vehicles. So we should all help work together and I'm happy that Dr. Tedros, the head of WHO, made the effort to be here at this meeting and demonstrate its commitment on road safety. And we must work together. We are called United Nations, so we must be united. All the agencies, all the governments to wake up what I call the silent pandemic. So, I mean, myself, my office, the Fund, all the people around this table, we are here to help, to support, and to make things changing because it's something I will say during the afternoon during the speech. Unfortunately, things are not changing as they should and it's not easy. You know, it's easy to give advice. Sometimes I visit countries and honestly, I feel a bit lost because I say, what can I do? Because I come, I'm a fortunate person, that's why I do this job incidentally.

Yes.

to give something back, but the disaster will continue. So we must stop this disaster. And I'm happy to see the contribution of private sector because it's very unfair sometimes when we say it's a responsibility of the government. It's not the responsibility of the government. Government has a role, strong role to play, but it's the responsibility of everybody. Everybody must cooperate.

Thank you.

And we must put that higher in the agenda. You know, very often also I visit the government, I visit our resident coordinator, and I say I'm going to make a bet. It's first time you speak about road safety. Most of the time I win my bet, and it should not be like that because again, we know the numbers. We know all that. Maybe I can make a challenge, and I see my friend Samad Kayyoub, who had been leading the conference in Marrakech together with the WHO last year, he made a commitment. And for me, that was the commitment of the whole conference. He said, and he mentioned that earlier, each motorbike sold has to be sold with 2 UN standard helmets. That's a commitment. That's something sure. You know, it's not by saying we need to do better. So I urge government of Benin to take this decision as well. And I mean, all the people who have a voice here in this room, just make a new regulation. As we have a safety belt in the car, let's— and it's about $50. It will increase the price of the motorbike. And Rwanda has been, I mean, also acting on that. So you can do it. I really— you can bring this message home and you can give us the good news that you will apply this new regulation. Thank you.


UNRSF · Head of Secretariat · Enika Henry [2:47:31]:

Thank you very— thank you everyone, to our co-hosts from the Regional Commission's Office, from the French Republic, and also from Jamaica Special Envoy's Office. Thank you very much for being here, and wishing you a good rest of the day. Thank you. Thank you.