PLEIKU CITY, Vietnam – May 17, 2022

Around the world, our community is mobilizing for the #CommitToAct Streets for Life Campaign 2022. AIP Foundation, along with its steadfast partners, is proud to join forces with this global movement from Pleiku, our model city for safe school zones in Vietnam.

AIP Foundation is gathering with government partners, the National Traffic Safety Committee (NTSC), the Ministry of Education and Training, the Ministry of Transport, the Gia Lai Provincial People’s Committee, the Gia Lai Provincial Traffic Safety Committee, and relevant partners for a workshop to celebrate the milestones of theSlow Zones, Safe Zonesprogram thus far and kickstart the extension phase.

A celebration of milestones

Today we are proud to celebrate the following successful milestones of theSlow Zones, Safe Zonesprogram:

• Assessment of Star Rating for School (SR4S) results, with all 25 surveyed schools were upgraded to 3 stars and above. 21 schools out of 25 schools were upgraded to 5 stars – the highest ranking regarding safety with SR4S
• Approval of the School Zone Definition by the Pleiku’s People’s Committee on May 16 through the legal document 1566/UBND-QLDT. This School Zone Definition will apply to new schools and existing schools undergoing modifications in the city, providing better protection for students commuting to and from school
• Development and approval of a traffic safety e-curriculum, as part of the Slow Zones, Safe Zonesprogram. The e-curriculum provides an effective and creative student-centered educational tool for primary students to learn the essential traffic safety skills from a young age. It has been approved by The Ministry of Education with Decision No 946 /QD-BGDĐT. This is the first nationwide-applied traffic safety e-curriculum for primary students in Vietnam
• Signing of the extension of the next phase of the program to continue championing #StreetsForLife in Pleiku

For all students across Pleiku City, the continuation of the Slow Zones, Safe Zones program will not only safeguard them on their commutes to school but will also ensure that all students have safe and equal access to their education. The program has and will continue to improve road safety immensely in Pleiku while increasingly encouraging families to walk and ride their bicycles to school, paving the way for healthier and greener cities.

The legacy of the Slow Zones, Safe Zones program

The overall purpose of theSlow Zones, Safe Zonesprogram is to reduce road crash injuries and fatalities in school zones. Our work has demonstrated that the students’ journeys to and from school become safer through implementation of traffic calming measures, reduction of posted speed limits in school zones, application of interactive learning through an e-curriculum, and public awareness campaigns combined with the enforcement of new posted speed limits.

This program, which aims to improve the safety of students’ journeys to and from schools, is supported by Fondation Botnar, the Global Road Safety Partnership, the FIA (Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile), and the International Road Assessment Programme, and aligns with the Global Plan of the Decade of Action for Road Safety 2021-2030. Similarly, Vietnam’s current National Road Safety Strategy supports meeting the goals of the 2030 UN Agenda for Sustainable Development, ensuring maximum traffic safety for school zones around the country.

Sustainable Development Goals are at the heart of our work. SDG target 3.6 calls to halve the number of global deaths and injuries from road traffic crashes. This is something that we can only achieve if we work together to create a lasting global impact with affordable, safe and sustainable mobility for all.