In Cambodia, more than 700,000 workers commute to and from garment and footwear factories every day. In 2020, road crashes among garment and footwear factory workers accounted for over 55% of the total commuting workers involved in road crashes. This does not only impact the lives of workers, but also the lives of the 2 million family members they support.

To address these dangerous commuting conditions, the Transportation Working Group, a group of committed brands, buyers and stakeholders – established in 2016 to identify ways to improve transportation safety for factory workers – hosted a national workshop on the possibility to transition from trucks to safer vehicles. The workshop is part of the Prevention & Participation Program supported by VF Corporation and the Commuting Safety for Cambodian Workers Program which is supported by USAID through the Solidarity Center.

As part of the Commuting Safety for Cambodian Workers (CSCW) program, funded by USAID through the Solidarity Centre, AIP Foundation hosted an Annual Media Forum the objective of which was to present evidence and recommendations to improve commuting safety for workers. This forum highlighted commuting safety issues to gain greater media coverage and public dissemination via diverse media platforms. Over 90 participants from the media sector, Government, trade unions, vehicle driver associations, and key stakeholders attended.

As part of the growing legacy of the Helmets for Kids Program, AIP Foundation in collaboration with the Traffic Safety Committee and Department of Education and Training of Tuyen Quang province, with support from Johnson & Johnson, hosted a project kick-off ceremony in Tuyen Quang City, Vietnam. The helmets make a life-saving difference for vulnerable school children on their way to and from school. This province is home to a significant number of ethnic minorities.

As part of the growing legacy of Safety Delivered, supported by The UPS Foundation, Phase III of the program is set to take place in Thai Nguyen City and Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. In cooperation with the Provincial Traffic Safety Committee and the Department of Education and Training, AIP Foundation will be hosting two helmet handover ceremonies for students.

Manulife Cambodia has joined hands with the AIP Foundation to donate close to 900 helmets to students and teachers at O Ambel Primary School in Banteay Meanchey Province as part of this year’s Helmets for Families (HFF) program.

Building on the success of Eco-Safe Driver Training Program Phase I, completed in 2020, AIP Foundation and the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH – with support from VF Corporation – launched Phase II in September 2021. The program aims to change drivers’ behavior by providing them with the knowledge and skills on defensive driving, fuel-efficiency, and vehicle safety, to empower drivers regarding sustainability and safer roads.

Road safety NGO shares first update on the AI&Me program demonstrating that the app is on track to help young people report unsafe road conditions to their government and effectively prevent road crashes, a leading cause of death for young people globally and in Vietnam.

In April 2021, AIP Foundation, with support from VF Corporation, officially launched the Feasibility Study for the Prevention & Participation (P&P) program with the Centre for Policy Studies. The Feasibility Study aimed to examine and identify best methods and practices to transition from unsafe collective transport to safer alternatives thereby saving lives.

We are now delighted to announce the virtual consultative meeting on ‘the Results of the Feasibility Study on the options to facilitate the transition to safer passenger (factory workers) transport vehicles’.

AIP Foundation, with support from the Australian Volunteers Program is expanding its protection for factory workers in our existing Commuting Safety for Cambodian Workers (CSCW) program which has an intervention across 30 factories. Through this current program, we are in a unique position to deliver first-hand, life-saving personal protective equipment to vulnerable workers.

AIP Foundation celebrates the end of a highly successful nine-year partnership with Chevron, investing in vulnerable communities by providing road safety interventions through their signature Walk Wise program. Through targeted education, nearly 160,000 students in two provinces in China benefitted from learning life-saving safety skills as road users. The powerful impact of Walk Wise led to a 26% decrease in reported accidents involving students from the local community.