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On February 17, 2021, the Africa Transport Policy Program (SSATP) participated in an internal webinar organized by the European Commission’s Directorate-General for International Partnerships (DG INTPA) and the DG of Mobility and Transport (DG MOVE). The objectives of the webinar were to: (i) introduce delegations to the EU policy framework for road safety (RS), (ii) share the international perspective on the significance of RS and why to support it; (iii) showcase practical examples of RS integration at the global, regional and national scale; (iv) and provide an opportunity to discuss how to embed the RS agenda into the programming of the EU’s new Multiannual Financial Framework for 2021-2027.

The meeting convened a total of 55 participants from Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Guinea, Sierra Leone, Turkey, and the Western Balkans, among others. Paolo Ciccarelli, Head of the Sustainable Transport and Urban Development Unit at DG INTPA and member of the SSATP Executive Committee, opened the webinar and stressed the need to integrate the RS agenda into the EU’s “Team Europe Initiatives” on health, education, digital transformation, smart and green cities to have a transformative impact and become part of the Multiannual Indicative Programmes (MIPs).

Matthew Baldwin, the Deputy Director-General of DG MOVE and Chair of the United Nations RS Fund, made a case for why EU delegations should support the RS agenda in their local programming. His impassioned speech was followed by a presentation from Peter Whitten, DG MOVE, who shared more context on the global RS policy framework and several points to consider, such as applying the “Safe System” approach; supporting activities related to the five RS pillars; addressing RS in a comprehensive manner that takes into account sustainable development, urban planning and mobility, public health and gender; and learning from the experiences of others.

The webinar concluded with presentations from SSATP and EU delegations from Turkey and Cameroon. Mustapha Benmaamar, SSATP Acting Program Manager, gave an overview of the SSATP Fourth Development Plan (2021-2025). Tawia Addo-Ashong, SSATP Road Safety Pillar Lead, presented the main objectives of the RS thematic area and the progress made thus far on the establishment of the African Road Safety Observatory (ARSO) and next steps.  At the end of the presentation, the EC renewed its commitment to support the development of ARSO. The Turkey case study provided a good practice example of RS interventions that can be achieved despite limited funds by launching a process that is fully owned by the government. The example of the Douala - Yaounde road improvement project in Cameroon raised the important issue of enforcing safe speed limits when passing through villages along a corridor to ensure the safety of vulnerable pedestrians.

SSATP Road Safety Overview - EU Meeting-17 Feb 2021 - REV.pdf