HCM CITY — A 17-day workshop that ended on January 6 taught safe driving skills and encouraged university students to promote traffic safety among their peers and in the community.

The workshop, which attracted 210 road-safety ambassadors from seven universities in HCM City and Hà Nội, was part of the Safety Delivered programme organised by Asia Injury Prevention (AIP) Foundation, supported by the UPS Foundation,

Uông Việt Dũng, deputy chief of the National Traffic Safety Committee, said the majority of road users, especially students, lacked motorcycle driving skills, which is a major factor in the high number of crashes in Việt Nam.

The National Traffic Safety Committee supports the Safety Delivered programme, which targets university students and empowers them to take on the role of road-safety ambassadors.

Following a series of focus group discussions with university students from Hà Nội and HCM City, AIP Foundation developed a motorcycle safety education toolkit in partnership with the National Traffic Safety Committee and the Ministry of Education and Training.

The training topics focus on risky behaviors among youth in Việt Nam, including not wearing a helmet, not checking blind spots, speeding, overtaking, and distracted driving.

AIP Foundation will encourage the use of diverse media as students design their own road safety initiatives.

Hoàng Na Hương, deputy CEO of AIP Foundation, said: “The student ambassadors play a critical role in Safety Delivered goals by promoting road-safety awareness among their peers. We are excited to empower these young people to use their experience and insights to make roads safe in their own communities.” — VNS