Egypt road safety media workshop
Participants of the Egypt road safety media workshopThe Egypt road safety media workshop was held on 11 December 2011 in Cairo, Egypt, as one of a series of similar workshops organized by WHO in countries that are part of the road safety in 10 countries project. The workshop was a collaborative effort by WHO at the global, regional and country levels and members of the road safety in 10 countries project, national working groups from different sectors, including health, traffic police, transport, academia, nongovernmental organizations and others. It was attended by about 30 journalists from print and audi-visual media.
The need for the workshop stemmed from the great influence that journalists and media have on public opinion and of them being key in the advocacy for road safety among individuals, communities and decision-makers at the highest levels.
The objectives of the workshop were to:
- foster an in-depth understanding of main concepts around road safety in Egypt
- promote a shift in coverage from basic reporting of road safety news and individual stories to their utilization as a foundation for addressing road safety as a whole with clear analysis of causes and consequences
- promote constructive reporting through the inclusion of feasible evidence-based solutions as an integral part of road safety coverage, whether print or audiovisual
- agree on a mechanism for feedback to the WHO Egypt country office on road safety media coverage.
Launch of the Decade of Action on Road Safety
Under the auspices of His Excellency Dr Essam Sharaf, Prime Minister of Egypt, the Decade of Action on Road Safety 2011–2020 was launched in Egypt on 11 May 2011.
Dr Ashraf Hatem, Minister of Health, spoke on behalf of H.E. the Prime Minister and emphasized the collaborative role of different sectors in working together to implement national plans to improve road safety. Dr Hussein A. Gezairy, former WHO Regional Director for the Eastern Mediterranean, acknowledged the declaration of the Decade of Action by the United Nations General Assembly as a major step in the direction towards safer roads for the well-being of all people across the globe. This initiative also witnessed the launch of the Traffic Sign Campaign for children aged 4–12. Ambassador Marc Franco, head of the European Union delegation to Egypt, emphasized the importance of the initiative and the high commitment of the European Union towards sharing the goals of the Decade of Action, which comes at the end of a twinning project of 2008–2010 between the European Union and Government of Egypt.
The ceremony was attended by officials from the Government of Egypt, Ministry of International Cooperation and the National Road Safety Council and by a delegation of the European Union to Egypt. Media representatives from different television channels such as Nile TV, Nile News and News Sector were also present, along with members of the press.
Egypt road safety in 10 countries project
According to the Global status report on road safety, 12 000 lives are lost annually to road traffic crashes in Egypt with a fatality rate of 42 deaths per 100 000 population. Almost 5% of those deaths are borne by four-wheeler passengers, followed by pedestrians at 20% of the death burden.
Different related laws are in place, including laws on speed, seat belts, helmets and blood–alcohol concentration. However, enforcement of these laws remains inadequate.
Egypt is one of the 10 countries of the road safety in 10 countries project conducted over 5-years 2010–2014 by a consortium of six international partners – WHO, the Global Road Safety Partnership, the International Injury Research Unit at Johns Hopkins University and the Association for Safe International Travel, with funding from The Bloomberg Family Foundation. The project focuses on different aspects of road traffic injury prevention in 10 low- and middle-income countries across the world: Brazil, Cambodia, China, Egypt, India, Kenya, Mexico, Russian Federation, Turkey and Viet Nam. In Kenya and Egypt the project also focuses on data system development and in Kenya and India on trauma care.
The road safety project in Egypt is led by a working group, including representatives from the Ministries of Interior, Education, and Health, as well as academia, trauma care services and nongovernmental organizations. The WHO country office coordinates the project. Activities focus on controlling speed and increasing seat-belt wearing rate, in addition to data system development.
Egypt road safety in 10 countries project fact sheet [pdf 1.53Mb]
Status of road safety in Egypt [pdf 210kb]
Egypt country profile - English [pdf 496kb] | Arabic [pdf 1.12Mb]