High-level delegation attends Moscow road safety conference
A five-man delegation led by Transport Minister Mike Henry will participate in the First Global Ministerial Road Safety Conference, in Moscow, from November 19 to 20.
The delegation includes: vice-chairman National Road Safety Council (NRSC) Dr Lucien Jones, NRSC executive director Paula Fletcher; Jamaica National Building Society (JNBS) general manager Earl Jarrett, and Deputy Commissioner of Police Charles Scarlett.
JNBS is co-sponsor of the NRSC’s Save 300 Lives Project.
Jamaica’s participation in the conference is aimed at supporting the call for the implementation of the policies and strategies of the Decade of Action for Road Safety to be undertaken in 2010-2020.
During this 10-year period the goal is to achieve a 50 per cent cut in projected global road deaths. This initiative seeks to reduce the current level of road deaths, which, according to projections, will become the leading cause of deaths, overtaking HIV/AIDS by 2020, particularly for low – mid income countries, if there is no appropriate counter action.
The best practices to achieve this goal will be promulgated at the conference, as there is recognition that the causes of road deaths and injuries are known and are preventable.
It is also recognised that the developed countries have made significant strides in protecting their population of road users and that countries with lower incomes are at a disadvantage in this regard, due to resource constraints. The Decade of Action for Road Safety seeks to correct this imbalance.
For these lower-income countries, sustainable development and therefore, the ability to achieve their Millennium Goals is under threat as many road deaths strain hospital resources, reduces productive potential and weakens the family structure, particularly when the bread winner is lost or is injured. The conference will also look at ways in which the international donor community can provide funding to support global, regional and national road safety investment and technical assistance programmes in lower- income countries.
