1. Date: April 24, 2007 Role of the Education Sector in Road Safety National Road Safety Conference

2. Road crashes are a major community health issue and a leading cause of death and serious injury especially for young children. In Pakistan 20% of all road deaths are of children under 15 years of age. Need for Road Safety?

3. Comprehensive road safety education programs can reverse the accident trends.  Road Safety is a key life-skill & a vital part of student learning for personal safety as well as for the safety of others in their community;  Educating school children and communities can help to create responsible road safety behaviors;  Creating awareness amongst the government, general road users, road agencies & traffic authorities is essential for improving coordination on road safety. Why Education for Road Safety

4. Program: Road Safety Education Program (RSEP) Donor: Road Sector Development Directorate, Works & Services Department (RSDD-WSD) & Asian Development Bank (ADB) Implementation agency: Sindh Education Foundation (SEF) Duration: 1 academic year (2006-2007) RSEP outreach: Jamshoro, Dadu, Khairpur & Larkana Target schools : 100 (10,000 students) - 50 SEF Community Based Schools & - 50 Government Schools A Pioneering Road Safety Education Program for Children

5. RSEP Milestones Pioneering pilot program of road safety education in the country Learning resources on road safety themes for children Teachers Training program Community Awareness workshops Informational materials: Newsletter; leaflets; website; documentary; media coverage Benefit Monitoring & Research Program enrichment Policy advocacy for highlighting the road safety agenda and inclusion of road safety education in the national curriculum Ownership of the issue by the private sector: The “National Road Safety Conference” is a partnership between the public and the private sector.

6. Today’s event provides a forum for all government and private stakeholders to recommend and discuss the nature and scope of public educational interventions on road safety issues taking into consideration specific groups such as school children, teachers, communities, etc. National Road Safety Conference

7. Education Sector & Road Safety: Challenges -Unsafe school zones; -Lack of educational curriculum on road safety -Obsolete pedagogical practices; -Lack of appropriate human and institutional capacity at school level; -Lack of appropriate policy formulation and implementation; -Uncommitted funding for road safety education & awareness.

8. What can the Education Sector do for Road Safety? -Commit funding for road safety education; -Inclusion of road safety topics in the national curriculum; -Capacity building programs for teachers and educators; -Teaching-learning aids for classrooms; -Commitment to educating general public on road safety through greater involvement of parents and civil society; -Partnerships and collaboration for advancing the road safety agenda.

9. Let’s Act Together towards keeping children safe on the roads through education and awareness.