Give a Vietnamese child a helmet; save a life

550 teachers in Dong Nai receive road safety training to kick off the new school year

The Dong Nai Department of Education and Training (DoET) and Traffic Safety Committee (TSC) organized a two-day training workshop on road safety education for 550 primary, secondary and high school teachers in the province. This was the kick-off capacity-building event for teachers in Dong Nai in the 2015-2016 school year.

Nhu Nguyen, Program Coordinator at AIP Foundation in Vietnam, gave a training on pedestrian and helmet safety, and proposed educational and communication activities that schools can implement in order to inspire behavior change among students and their parents.

The teachers actively participated in discussions and conducted teaching simulations at the end of the training. The learning resources and proposed educational activities provided in this seminar were highly appreciated by the participants. It is expected that they will use the knowledge gained from the training to implement more effective road safety education at their schools.

Plans are underway for Dong Nai DoET and TSC to distribute relevant communications materials including 14,300 banners and 60,000 notebooks to all schools, and donate 5,000 helmets for underprivileged students in the province.

U.S. Consul General gives out 100 Protec helmets at CDC presentation

In partnership with the U.S. Consulate General in Ho Chi Minh City, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) gave a story-telling presentation on road safety and the 2007 helmet law in Vietnam.

The event took place at the American Corner, where a large audience of young people gathered to hear CDC epidemiologist Dr. Ninh Thi Ha discuss road safety from a global health perspective before delving into local helmet-wearing behaviors.

A large portion of the data in the presentation relies on field research conducted by CDC epidemiologists in the Chu Chi District of Ho Chi Minh City.

After an engaging Q&A session, 100 Protec helmets were handed out to attendees by Consul General Rena Bitter. The helmets bore the 20th anniversary logo of normalized U.S.-Vietnam diplomatic relations.

Cross-sector educational activities make roads safer in Vietnam

AIP Foundation, with support from Nghi Son Refinery and Petrochemicals (NSRP), has concluded a series of cross-sector educational activities on road safety in Vietnam’s Tan Truong, Hai Thuong and Mai Lam communes.

On 30 July at the Headquarters of Nghi Son Police Station in Tinh Gia District, a workshop was held to enhance the policing of high-risk road behavior. Among the 40 total participants were 25 police officers from the three aforementioned communes, joined by representatives of NSRP and the Thanh Hoa and Tinh Gia traffic safety committees and police.

The objectives of the workshop were to develop strategies for increased traffic law enforcement, targeting specific high-risk violations; strengthen the network among provincial, district, and commune police, thereby creating a platform to share knowledge and best practices; and, establish resources for continued professional development. In the long run, the training is expected to translate into reductions of dangerous behavior on local roads as well as improved community awareness of traffic laws.

Between 5 and 6 August, on-the-job safe driving training was offered to over 300 participants from the Anh Phat and Lilama manufacturing corporations.

From 10 to 11 August in Tan Truong Commune and from 15 to 16 August at Nghi Son high school, a total of 214 motorcycle drivers received training on road traffic laws and safe driving skills. Participants each received a quality helmet courtesy of NSRP and will take their driving license exam at the end of the month.

Finally, three new billboards were installed and six renovated to promote road safety in the three aforementioned communes.