Vietnam - May 12, 2019

AIP Foundation, as a Safe Kids Vietnam affiliate, worked with FedEx Express to celebrate the UN Global Road Safety Week with a workshop to present the milestones of the Walk This Way program.

Launched in 2009 and conducted by FedEx and AIP Foundation to increase awareness of child pedestrian safety and improve road user behavior in Vietnam, Walk This Way has reached more than 200,000 students from 315 primary and secondary schools across the country, and donated helmets, reflective jackets and caps, pedestrian safety pencil cases, and pedestrian safety books to students.

In Ho Chi Minh City, AIP Foundation has led the installation of school zone modifications for Ket Doan Primary School, Mach Kiem Hung Secondary School, Pham Van Chi Primary School, and Hung Vuong Primary School, four of 37 program schools, based on their zoning needs. The modifications included installing sidewalks, yellow warning lights, and refuge islands as well as basic elements like school zone and pedestrian crossing signs and slow down markings.

The modifications were based on the findings of the International Road Assessment Program’s Star Rating for Schools (SR4S), which helps rate the risks and safety of roads on a 1-star (least safe) to 5-star (safest) scale. These road upgrades led to an increase in the star rating of all four schools, ensuring a measurable improvement of the safety level offered to students on their way to the school. Post-modification results showed that all schools had at least a three or above according to the SR4S ratings.

The workshop gathered representatives from the Ho Chi Minh City Traffic Safety Committee, Ho Chi Minh Department of Education and Training, and Urban Transportation Management Area 1 as well as from the selected and participating schools.