iRAP was proud to support training recently delivered in Kyrgyzstan as part of the CAREC Road Safety and Sustainable Mobility Course.

The five-day course, which was officially opened by the Deputy Minister for Transport and Communication of the Kyrgyzstan, is part of a wider programme developed by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the CAREC Institute in partnership with the Global Road Safety Partnership (GRSP) and Eastern Alliance for Safe and Sustainable Transport (EASST) to build road safety capacity amongst government practitioners from within the CAREC Programme.

Targeted toward implementation of the CAREC Regional Road Safety Strategy (2017 – 2030) and the Global Plan for the Decade of Action for Road Safety 2021 – 2030, the course covers best practice approaches to designing and building safer roads, including the importance of effective community engagement in support of infrastructure improvements, and applying evidence-based interventions to national and local jurisdictions in the CAREC region.

The course has been developed for a Central Asian audience – with participants from government agencies in Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan – and draws on good practice through local and international case studies, including site visits to successful road safety interventions in Bishkek. It will also look at opportunities to improve road safety data systems and build knowledge of vehicle safety technologies.

On opening the course, Deputy Minister Yrysbek Bariev said, “The topic of the course is really very serious and important. I think that events of this kind should be held more often. I hope that an important aspect of the seminar will be the exchange of work experience, practical analysis of setting large-scale goals and strategies for ensuring CAREC road safety. We must work together and learn how to make roads safe, prevent premature death and disability of people and, first of all, children. Today’s course is a good platform for developing and agreeing on common approaches to solving the problems of CAREC road safety.”

Blaise Murphet, GRSP commented, “The course has provided an incredible chance to meet and connect with Government leaders from the countries and discuss how to continue their momentum in making transport safe and sustainable for all. Huge credit to our participants for their open debate, discussion and contributions.”

Data from the recent Global Status Report on Road Safety shows that the rate of road fatalities across the 11 CAREC countries, while generally declining, is still 10% higher than the global average and two times higher than the average for the European Region.

iRAP estimates the economic cost of these tragedies as approximately USD $30 billion per year across the region. Investing in road safety and applying the Safe System approach is crucial to supporting sustainable development and saving lives.

The CAREC (Central Asia Regional Economic Cooperation) is a partnership of 11 countries and development partners working together to promote development through regional cooperation.

See the course content here.

See local press coverage here.