Independent safety scrutiny has seen the Toyota Starlet in the South African market jump from a zero-star rating to four stars in just a few months, following consultation with Global NCAP, supported by the FIA Foundation.

In May 2026, Safer Cars for Africa gave the Toyota Starlet zero stars for adult occupant protection. After discussions that followed the testing, Toyota announced that the South African Starlet range would be updated with additional safety features. By September, the updated model had earned four stars for adult occupant protection. Global NCAP's independent crash testing programme focuses on popular base-model cars. It continues to expose the gap between near-identical vehicles sold with very different levels of protection depending on where they are bought.

Global NCAP launched the latest results from its #SaferCarsforAfrica programme, at its Forum for Safer Mobility in Cape Town, South Africa. The second Forum was hosted in partnership with the Automobile Association of South Africa, under the theme 'Democratising Vehicle Safety in Africa', focusing on how to ensure vehicle safety improvements are not confined to the world's wealthier regions. South Africa's Deputy Director-General for Road Transport, Lebohang Ntwampe, opened the session with a keynote address. He set the tone for the policymakers, industry leaders, development partners and media who had gathered to shape the future of vehicle safety across the continent. The FIA Foundation's Olivia Nalwadda called for Africa to demand safer vehicles through NCAPs and [GU1.1]regulation, stressing that vehicle safety must go hand in hand with the other pillars of the Safe System approach.

The Forum draws attention to Africa’s road safety challenges at a critical time. Road deaths have fallen globally in recent years, but Africa is the only WHO region where fatalities have risen, with a 17% increase between 2010 and 2021. There are, however, signs of progress: This year Africa adopted the African Road Safety Charter, its first continent-wide, legally binding road safety framework. The Charter commits participating nations to the Decade of Action goal of halving global road deaths and serious injuries by 2030.