Guide for Road Safety Opportunities and Challenges: Low-and Middle-Income Country Profiles

Every year, 1.35 million lives are lost and 50 million people are seriously injured in traffic crashes. This is a continuing challenge facing particularly Low- and Middle-income Countries (LMICs) where 93% of deaths occur.   The UN Decade of Action for Road Safety 2011–2020 has seen significant progress.  Nonetheless, the targets set in 2011 are far from being realized with the decade ending this year.  As we enter a next decade, it is critical to take stock of our past achievements as well as lessons learned in order to tackle this global challenge in stabilizing and reducing the traffic fatalities and serious injuries.

This Guide for Road Safety Opportunities and Challenges: Low- and middle-income Country Profiles, is a very important tool to facilitate that. It is the first data report to cover all 125 LMICs with comprehensive road safety country profiles.  The profiles present information on each pillar of road safety—management, roads, speed, vehicles, road users, and post-crash care—, to help countries and development practitioners identify challenges and opportunities, and monitor of progress. The guide gives a precise assessment on the magnitude and complexity of road safety challenges faced by LMICs and helps policy makers understand the road safety framework in context of their own country systems and performance.