| Australia’s overseas aid agency, AusAID, has pledged $500,000 to the Facility to help tackle rising road deaths in South East Asia. Australia becomes the third government, after Sweden and the Netherlands, to commit funds to the Facility.
The latest funding will be used to develop a pilot scheme by the International Road Assessment Programme (iRAP) to help curb a sharp rise in road deaths in Vietnam. The Vietnamese government has sought international help to reduce the suffering and high cost of road accidents.
In 2001 there was a 29 per cent increase in the number of motorcycles but a 37 per cent rise in road deaths.
Greg Hunt, the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Foreign Affairs, said the pilot programme would identify high risk roads and affordable engineering projects to improve safety.
"Vietnamese officials will also be trained in road safety assessment and methods to improve public awareness of road safety," Hunt said.
"Australia's assistance in Vietnam follows support for an earlier road safety programme that encouraged bicycle and motorcycle riders to wear safety helmets," he added.
Hunt said that 44 per cent of road deaths worldwide occur in the Asia Pacific region, although it is home to just 16 per cent of the world's motorised vehicle fleet.
"The combination of traffic, dense populations and high pedestrian numbers is a significant obstacle to improving road safety," he said.
Tony Bliss, Lead Road Safety Specialist at the World Bank, and manager of the Global Road Safety Facility said: “We are delighted that Australia is joining the Global Road Safety Facility and supporting this vital work in Vietnam. We hope Australia’s decision will encourage other leading donor countries to also support the Facility”.
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