We currently have offices and operations in Cambodia, China, Thailand, and Vietnam and programming in India, Myanmar, and the Philippines. Our technical assistance, helmet donations, and consultancy extends across Africa, Asia, and Latin America.
We currently have programs in China, Cambodia, India, Myanmar, Thailand, Philippines, and Vietnam.
Road injury is Cambodia’s sixth leading cause of premature death. Between 2010 and 2015, the number of registered vehicles in Cambodia rose by 70 percentage points, and this increase was mostly made up of motorcycles – in 2016, 2- and 3-wheelers accounted for more than 70% of registered vehicles. In 2016, road crashes reportedly caused 1,852 fatalities, a 17% decrease compared to 2015, with a decrease in serious injuries by 13%. However, the World Health Organization estimates that the number of annual road deaths may be much higher at more than 2,800 people. Research suggests that 2.3% of Cambodia’s GDP is lost due to road crashes. In 2015, motorcycle crashes caused 30 times as many fatalities as malaria, dengue fever, and landmines combined.
Motorcyclists account for 73% of road crash fatalities in Cambodia, and 77% of motorcycle riders killed in road crashes and 99% of child passengers are not wearing a helmet. Compared with helmeted motorcyclists, non-helmeted motorcyclists are more than four times as likely to have head injuries and more than ten times as likely to have brain injuries. While motorcycle drivers are required by law to wear helmets in Cambodia, no mandatory helmet law existed for passengers until 2015. We engaged key stakeholders and the national government to implement the first motorcycle passenger helmet law as part of a two-year long national passenger helmet use campaign. In our target areas we estimate that 349 adults were protected from injuries and/or fatalities and $3,089,316 USD saved between 2014 and 2016.
In Cambodia, AIP Foundation partners with stakeholders in the public and private sectors to promote safer road practices, policies, and enforcement with the ultimate goal of preventing road crash injuries and fatalities. Today, our key activities include:
Issue Areas
Helmet Safety
Distracted Driving and Driver Skills
Occupational Safety
Road injury is China’s third leading cause of premature death, ranking above hypertensive heart disease and Alzheimer’s disease The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that 256,180 people were killed in road crashes in 2016. This translates into more than 700 people killed across China every day. Road injuries have become one of the top 10 causes of death in all provinces of China.
The backdrop of this emerging road safety crisis has been China’s rapid motorization and urbanization. There are almost 300 million registered road vehicles in China. Though car use is still modest, it is the world’s largest new car market. Neither Chinese infrastructure nor the public’s level of road safety knowledge has kept pace with this unprecedented growth; many people also tend to violate current road traffic regulations, resulting in traffic crash related deaths. Poor road conditions currently hamper Industrial traffic and poor road conditions also endanger the communities living in areas with heavy industrial development.
AIP Foundation launched a school-based program, Walk Wise, in 2012 to provide road safety education to children, teachers, parents, and community members living in Chongqing, China. The program seeks to improve the road safety environment for students and their communities. The program is tailored to the specific issues faced on local roads. AIP Foundation engages a variety of government and community partners to encourage awareness and smart road user behavior.
Today, our key activities include:
Issue Areas:
Safe School Zones and Pedestrian Safety
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), Myanmar has over 6 million registered vehicles of which motorized 2- and 3-wheelers account for almost 85%. In 2016, road crashes resulted in close to 10,400 reported deaths in Myanmar.
Road crashes in Myanmar are the fourth leading cause of death for people aged 15-49 and the third leading cause for males aged 5-49. A significant factor in Myanmar’s increase in road crash fatalities and injuries is the rapid increase in motorization being experienced by the country; research suggests that Myanmar’s vehicle fleet may expand by 10-15% per annum, in a context of liberalization and quick economic development. Road traffic crashes cost Myanmar 1.5% of annual GDP.
Comprehensive motorcycle helmet laws have been passed in the country, with these applying to both drivers and passengers. Despite this being enforced, only 32% of drivers and 27% of passengers wear helmets when operating motorized 2- and 3-wheelers. A reported 89% of injured motorcyclists were found not to be wearing helmets. Despite Myanmar enforcing a motorcycle helmet law, this currently does not apply to motorcycle helmet standards. Helmet observations at target schools in Mandalay region, Myanmar revealed that less although 90% of students commuted to school by motorcycle, only 1% of those students wore helmets.
AIP Foundation has developed key public-private partnerships in order to establish a framework for sustainable and relevant programming in the region.
Thailand has the eighth highest road crash fatality rate in the world with more than 32 deaths per 100,000 population, which is nearly double the global rate. Road injury is the third leading cause of premature mortality in Thailand. Road injury is the leading cause of death among Thai men ages 15-49 and the second leading cause of death among all people 15-49. In 2016, road crashes caused 22,491 fatalities and untold numbers of injuries, causing economic losses accounting for between 3-5% of Thailand’s annual GDP.
In 2016, Thailand’s more than 20 million registered motorcycles accounted for 55% of all registered vehicles. Riders of 2- and 3-wheeled motorized vehicles are estimated to make up 74% of all deaths caused by road crashes. Head injuries are the leading cause of death in fatal motorcycle crashes, but wearing a helmet in a crash reduces the risk of death by 42% and injury by 69%. Thailand has a comprehensive motorcycle helmet law, but helmets are widely underused. In 2016, only 51% of motorcycle drivers and 20% of passengers in Thailand reported wearing a helmet when riding a motorcycle. Among Thai motorcyclists, short travel distances, journeys made off of main highways, and rushed trips are the three leading reasons given for not wearing a helmet. Thailand lacks standards for child restraint laws, safety audits for new road construction projects, and policies to separate motorists from pedestrians and cyclists. Thailand’s traffic police received low ratings from the United Nations for enforcement of speed limits and helmet laws.
AIP Foundation works across industries and sectors to implement targeted and comprehensive approaches to road safety. Our programming encompasses increasing helmet-wearing, enforcing safe speed zones, teaching driving best practices, and fostering a robust culture of road safety among families and communities.
Speeding
Seatbelts and Child Restraints
According to World Health Organization, road crashes resulted in approximately 25,000 deaths in Vietnam in 2016. Someone is killed or injured on Vietnam’s roads every minute. Road injuries are the third leading cause of premature death, causing more deaths than lung cancer, tuberculosis, or HIV/AIDS. Approximately 2,000 children die on the roads each year (the equivalent of 5 deaths per day). Road crashes are the fourth leading cause of death among Vietnamese children ages 5-14. Road injuries cost Vietnam more than 5.4 billion USD annually, which accounts for 2.9% of its GDP.
Motorcycles account for 93% of registered vehicles in Vietnam, and their users account for 67% of Vietnam’s road crash fatalities. Of these fatalities, nearly 78% are a result of head injury.
In 2006, before nationwide mandatory helmet laws, motorcycle helmet use in Vietnam was between 6 and 10% on city roads. Helmet use tended to be higher on roads where use was compulsory. After the enactment of Resolution 32 in December 2007, helmet use immediately increased to 99%. Helmet use among adults has since remained above 80%, and motorcycle-related fatalities per vehicle have decreased by 46%. Since the enacting the law, AIP Foundation estimates that approximately 5 billion USD has been saved, and nearly 738,848 road injuries and 40,728 fatalities have been prevented.
AIP Foundation leverages its long-time strategic partnerships in Vietnam to promote pedestrian and school zone safety, child helmet use, safe driving behavior, and general road safety curriculum with the ultimate goal of preventing road crash injuries and fatalities.
Distracted Driving & Driver Skills
