Road crashes are a global killer and in poorer countries death rates are rising fast. Although developing and transition countries account for only 32% of motorised traffic, they bear the brunt of more than 75% of road traffic injuries. The World Health Organisation (WHO) is sufficiently concerned that it has made road safety a policy priority.
The FIA Foundation is providing €1 million in 2002 to a new World Health Organisation road safety programme in a number of developing countries with serious road fatality problems, including Mozambique, Vietnam, Pakistan, Costa Rica and Ethiopia. The money provided by the FIA Foundation will account for almost half the budget of the WHO programme in its first year.
There is a serious absence of basic statistical and practical tools for dealing with road casualties in these developing countries. In Europe and the USA the police compile accident reports when deaths and injuries have occurred as a matter of routine, helping to build up an overall picture of where, when and why road accidents are happening. But this sort of reporting is very rare in many poorer countries. The WHO programme will aim to improve data collection on road accidents by both law enforcement and medical personnel. This will then help local authorities to prioritise road safety and medical intervention and to promote accident prevention.