Phnom Penh, Cambodia – 1 June 2020

Over a three-year period from 2019 to 2022, 30 factories in high-risk provinces, in Phnom Penh, Kandal, Kampong Speu, and other high-risk provinces in Cambodiawill be targeted with road safety policy advocacy campaigns and the formation of road safety working groups to increase awareness of the importance of commuting safety through the Commuting Safety for Cambodian Workers (CSCW) program. The CSCW program is implemented by AIP Foundation and the Solidarity Center and funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).

In 2019, road crashes involving garment and footwear factory workers accounted for over 53% of the total commuting workers involved in road crashes. A survey of workers and collective transport drivers at 5 factories conducted by AIP Foundation found that over 90% of people were fearful of other drivers causing road crashes, and 28% of workers were concerned about vehicle overloading. To address these troubling statistics, the CSCW program will educate collective transport drivers about safe driving behaviors and safer modes of transport, encourage workers to avoid overloaded and unseated vehicles, and create safer road users through awareness-raising and trainings.

The program will target factories located in higher crash-risk areas, near national roads, or with a history of recent crash cases among workers.By establishing and training road safety working groups, developing and implementing transport safety policies and guidelines, and creating “speak up” awareness and advocacy campaigns that utilize social media to encourage workers to raise their concerns to leadership about commuting safety, the program seeks to contribute to a safer commuting culture within factories.

Through advocating for evidence-based policy change and the adoption of safer transport options, as well as infrastructure improvements, more workers will be ultimately able to safely access economic opportunities without the risk of injury, disability, or death.

Road crashes also do not only impact the lives of workers, but also the lives of the2 million family members they support, and the productivity of factories which rely on their labor. A survey of 233 factories in Cambodia found that a total of 7,619 days were lost due to crashes over a 12-month period in 2016.