The World Bank Global Road Safety Facility (WBGRSF) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the International Road Federation (IRF) in which the parties will work together to provide roadway safety training programs to low and middle-income countries. With this new partnership, The Facility and IRF will work together to reduce

the toll of road deaths and serious injuries in low and middle income countries.

Among those injured or killed in road traffic accidents, there are a disproportionate number of fatalities among poor countries, and this gap between poor and rich countries will continue to widen unless new global, regional and country initiatives are taken to close it. The World Bank Global Road Safety Facility aims to generate and catalyze increased funding to support initiatives aimed at reducing deaths and injuries in low and

middle-income countries.

To accomplish the goal of making the world’s roads safer, The Facility is partnering with IRF to develop training programs using independent modules that will focus on, but not be limited to, Roadside Safety and Median Applications, Intersection and Roundabout Safety and Vulnerable User (pedestrian) Safety.

IRF is the world’s only federation that solely represents the road industry. With a wide network across more than 110 countries, IRF uses its network of safety experts and roadindustry professionals to reduce the number of accidents, injuries and, above all, the needless deaths occurring everyday on the world’s roads.

“Road traffic accidents cost countries up to 4 percent of their Gross National Product. This is money that could be used on education, healthcare, and food,” said Patrick Sankey, CEO & Director General, IRF-Washington. “Through its training, IRF introduces simple, low-cost engineering measures which will save thousands of lives, provide a better standard of living, and accomplish the World Bank’s goals.”

Tony Bliss, World Bank Lead Road Safety Specialist and manager of the Facility, remarked that the MOU signed with the IRF adds another solid partner to the World Bank’s mission to improve road safety outcomes. “The Facility is pleased to continue developing our relationship with the IRF, in particular through its training packages that seek to reduce road deaths and injuries through safe infrastructure-based solutions.”

IRF will begin providing new roadway safety training programs beginning in 2008. For

more information on IRF’s roadway safety training program, contact Mike Dreznes, deputy director general, training and safety, at the Washington office of IRF, mdreznes@irfnews.org. For information on the World Bank Global Road Safety Facility, contact Marc Shotten, Operations Officer, Transport Unit, World Bank at mshotten@worldbank.org.

The WBGSRF began operations in 2006, to combat the 1.2 million annual deaths from road traffic injuries. The Governments of Australia, the Netherlands, and Sweden are founding donors to the Facility, along with the FIA Foundation in the UK and the World Bank Development Grant Facility. The Facility is located in the Transport Unit at World Bank headquarters in Washington, DC. Founded in 1948, the International Road Federation (IRF) is a non-governmental, not for-profit organization with members from both the public and private sectors in 90 countries worldwide. IRF promotes the development and maintenance of better, safer roads and road networks throughout the world, using technological solutions and management practices that provide maximum economic and social returns from road investment.