iRAP is supporting countries in preparation for the upcoming United Nations High-Level Meeting on Road Safety to be held in New York on 20-21 July 2026. Letters have been sent to Heads of State and Governments sharing the opportunity of safer roads and streets to prevent more than 600,000 deaths and millions of injuries each year, thus achieving the Decade of Action for Road Safety target of a 50 per cent reduction in deaths and injuries by 2030. 

This High-Level Meeting marks the midpoint of the Decade of Action for Road Safety, a critical checkpoint to assess whether commitments are translating into results, and to accelerate meaningful action.

Road safety stakeholders can support the letter campaign, an important initiative to secure commitments in the Safer Roads Pillar.

iRAP Letter Campaign 

iRAP holds UN ECOSOC Consultative Status and letters sent to leaders of over 160 countries via their UN Permanent Mission outline national progress and the Business Case for Safer Roads in each country. They urge leaders to: 

• Actively participate in the High-Level Meeting.  
• Support the Kyrgyz Republic and Slovak Republic permanent missions to the UN in preparing a bold and decisive statement to save lives and prevent injuries.  
• Assess progress made towards achieving national road safety commitments, including those shared at the 4th Global Ministerial Conference on Road Safety.  
• Ensure that national road safety strategy and plans are in harmony with the Global Plan for the Decade of Action for Road Safety 2021-2030, particularly with Global Performance Targets 3 and 4 for roads. 
• Share road safety successes as an inspiration for continued, life-saving action. 
• Renew commitments to bold action on safety, ensuring that the necessary institutional and financial mechanisms are in place.  

About the UN High-level Meeting on Road Safety 

Convened by the President of the UN General Assembly and the World Health Organization, the 2026 High-level Meeting theme is ‘Scaling up and accelerating implementation of commitments to halving road traffic deaths and injuries by 2030.’ 

The event will bring Heads of state and government, ministers, officials and experts together from governments, the UN, civil society, academia, the private sector and philanthropic foundations to advance progress in meeting the goal of halving road deaths and injuries by 2030 that was agreed in the UN Decade of Action for Road Safety 2021-2030 and the Sustainable Development Goals.  

The two-day event, held at UN Headquarters in New York, will build on the Political Declaration of the High-Level Meeting on Road Safety adopted by the UN General Assembly in June 2022, and the Fourth Global Ministerial Conference on Road Safety held in Morocco in February 2025.  

A concise and action-orientated Declaration will be agreed in advance by intergovernmental negotiation and published after the UN High-level Meeting. While not legally binding, it carries significant political weight.

Preparatory Interactive Multi-Stakeholder Hearing 

An Interactive Multi-Stakeholder Hearing on Improving Global Road Safety will be held as part of the preparatory process on 12 May at UN Headquarters in New York. Representatives of non-governmental organizations, relevant civil society organizations, academic institutions, philanthropic foundations, medical associations, the private sector and broader communities are invited to attend.  

Read more on the Multi-Stakeholder Hearing and register here. Read the Concept Note here.

The Preparatory Multi-Stakeholder Hearing and High-level Meeting on Road Safety will be broadcast on UN WebTV. 

How Partners can Engage: Before, During, and After

Before the High-Level Meeting

• Download your country’s letter and amplify the initiative locally – for example by using the letter as an opportunity to call a meeting with relevant Ministers, on-sharing the letter to influential stakeholders, and amplifying it in promotional channels. You can see an example of Malawi’s successful advocacy ahead of the 2022 UN High-level Meeting here. 
• Engage directly with your national government to ensure awareness and participation
• Advocate for key priorities: commitments aligned to UN Targets 3 and 4, evidence-based financing and accountability
• Suggest inputs for what your government should support in the Declaration
• Let us know about your activities. The results will be shared with global lead agencies in the lead-up to and after the High-level Meeting. 

During the High-Level Meeting

• Monitor what your government says and commits to (the broadcast will be livestreamed on UN WebTV)
• Follow discussions and identify key outcomes
• Contribute through available platforms where possible

After the High-Level Meeting

• Support your government in implementing safer roads commitments
• Track whether commitments are implemented
• Share case studies of success

The Current Global Status of Road Safety 

A note by the UN Secretary-General, titled ‘Improving global road safety’ was released on 13 February 2026 and provides a status report on global road safety. The report notes that road traffic injuries remain a major global health and development challenge, and that road safety must be institutionalized as a long-term priority, with robust agencies, strategic planning and measurable targets in place across all countries, and supported by the private sector, civil society and youth movements regardless of income level.  

The Life-saving Opportunity of Safer Roads 

Global Road Safety Performance Targets 3 and 4 encourage governments to lift the safety of roads and designs to 3-stars or better for all road users.  

For each Star Rating improvement of a road or design, crash costs roughly halve. 

Research with Johns Hopkins University (JHU) has already shown that road infrastructure projects implemented by partners worldwide with iRAP tools and resources are estimated to have prevented some 860,000 deaths and injuries by the end of 2025. 

For More Information 

• On the UN High-level Meeting on Road Safety, click here. 
• To download iRAP’s letter to your Head of State or Government, click here. 
• To see the human and economic burden of road trauma, how safe your roads are, and the Business Case for Safer Roads, investigate iRAP’s Safety Insights Explorer here.  
• To speak to us about the letters and to report associated activities, contact Judy Williams, iRAP’s Global Programme and Communications Manager on email judy.williams@irap.org