Road Safety Working Groups established to advocate for safer commutes within Cambodian factories 

May – June 2020, Phnom Penh

In the months of May and June, AIP Foundation Cambodia held solution-oriented meetings with government stakeholders, civil society organizations, and factory worker trade union representatives, to raise awareness of issues facing garment and factory workers during their daily commutes and present program objectives for the first of the three-year Commuting Safety for Cambodian Workers program, which will reach 30 factories, cumulatively. 

As part of the program’s first year of implementation, AIP Foundation selected six target factories, located across Phnom Penh, Kandal, Kampong Speu and Svay Rieng Province. Factories were selected based on priority criteria, including being located in high-risk crash areas, on or near national roads, or having a recent history of many crash cases. 

On 30 June, AIP Foundation held a virtual call with 35 representatives from the six factories to discuss the establishment of Road Safety Working Groups in each factory that will serve as employee models and advocates for safer roads. These groups will be comprised of representatives from the trade unions and teams within various departments of the factories, including human resources, security, occupational safety and health, and factory management. Each working group will consist of 10-15 members who will be responsible for raising awareness and taking action to prevent and protect workers from issues they face during their commutes. 

The kick-off meeting follows a series of planning sessions that took place in May and early June, in which AIP Foundation met with senior representatives from the Commissariat of the National Police, the National Social Security Fund, and presidents from three worker trade unions. Trade union members shared with AIP Foundation possible solutions and ideas to expand road crash prevention education and intervention in the factories.