Preventing Drink Driving in Africa | Page 2

UNECE, UNECA AND IARD COLLABORATION This e-book is the outcome of a collaboration between the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE), the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA), and the International Center for Alcohol Policies (ICAP; now the International Alliance for Responsible Drinking, IARD). UNECE is one of the five United Nations regional commissions administered by the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC). The UNECE Transport Division facilitates the international movement of persons and goods by inland transport modes. It aims to improve competitiveness, safety, energy efficiency, and security in the transport sector. For more than six decades, the UNECE Inland Transport Committee (ITC) has provided a platform for intergovernmental cooperation to facilitate and develop international transport while improving its safety and environmental performance. ITC is the parent body of the Working Party on Road Traffic Safety (WP.1) which is the only permanent body in the United Nations system focussed on improving road safety. WP.1 has created a multilateral legal framework, which includes the Conventions on Road Traffic, and Road Signs and Signals, both of which were done in Vienna in 1968. Many countries across the world have become Contracting Parties to these road safety instruments and benefit from their implementation. UNECE also provides technical assistance and capacity building in road safety management. In this context, the UNECE staff travel across the world to promote accession to, and the better implementation of, the above legal instruments. UNECA is another United Nations Regional Commission. Its mandate is to promote the economic and social development of its Member States, foster intra-regional integration, and promote international cooperation for Africa’s development. UNECA plays a leading role in efforts to improve the safety of Africa’s roads. In this context, it has organised several high-level road safety events on the continent, bringing together different stakeholders to brainstorm about the continent’s road safety challenges and opportunities. UNECA spearheaded the preparation of the African Road Safety Action Plan for the period 2011-2020, in the context of the United Nations Global Decade of Action for Road Safety (2011-2020). It also has an important role in monitoring and evaluating the implementation of the Action Plan. Recently, UNECA worked closely with the African Union Commission to prepare the African Road Safety Charter that was endorsed at the Third Ordinary Session of the Conference of African Ministers of Transport, held in Malabo, Equatorial Guinea, from 7-11 April 2014. The International Alliance for Responsible Drinking (IARD) is a not-for-profit organisation supported by major international producers of alcohol beverages with a mission to promote understanding of the role of alcohol in society and to help reduce harmful drinking worldwide, including reducing drink driving. Formerly the International Center for Alcohol Policies (ICAP), the organisation has been recognised by the United Nations Economic and Social Council as a non-governmental organisation with Special Consultative Status. In 2013, ICAP and UNECE jointly organised an international symposium as part of Global Road Safety Week “Regional perspectives on preventing alcohol related road crashes involving vulnerable road users” and launched an e-book with papers presented during the symposium. 2 TABLE OF CONTENTS 4 WELCOME 6 BACKGROUND 8 SUMMARY OF PROCEEDINGS 10 UNITED NATIONS ROAD SAFETY INSTRUMENTS 14 DELEGATE RECOMMENDATIONS: Regarding United Nations Road Safety Legal Instruments 16 STATUS OF THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE AFRICAN ROAD SAFETY ACTION PLAN 18 THE IMPACT OF ALCOHOL ON ROAD CRASHES 20 RESULTS OF SURVEYS 24 ADDRESSING DRINK DRIVING – INTERNATIONAL GOOD PRACTICES 27 DISCUSSION GROUP HIGHLIGHTS FROM DRINK DRIVING WORKSHOP 30 CONCLUSION: CHALLENGES AHEAD AND ACTIONS AGREED 33 ANNEX 1: LIST OF PARTICIPANTS 36 ANNEX 2: PROGRAMME 3