GIA LAI Province, Vietnam - June 19, 2020

AIP Foundation collaborated with Gia Lai Traffic Safety Committee to organize a technical capacity-building for the Technical and Strategic Steering Committee (TSSC) of Slow Zones, Safe Zones program in Gia Lai, Vietnam. The TSSC members include leaders of Gia Lai Traffic Safety Committee, Department of Education and Training, Pleiku City People’s Committee, Pleiku Police, and two certified road safety auditors.

Mr. Vu Anh Tuan, Director of the Transportation Research Center of Vietnam German University and Mr. Le Van Thanh, Specialist of the Traffic Safety Unit from the Ministry of Transportation in Vietnam, were present as trainers. Through their expertise, the TSSC members learned about components of a “safe school zone”, the role of both the public and private sector actors in working together to create those school zones, and the work of improving road safety for children through a review of international best practices in school zone design and establishment. Members got the chance to hear literature and research on what school zone definitions generally look like and how they are used, in order to inform the TSSC’s “working definition” of a school zone.

Based on the lessons, the TSSC members will be able to draft a standard school zone definition that will apply to both new schools and existing schools that are currently undergoing modifications. This draft will be submitted to the Pleiku People’s Committee for the passage of a city-wide law that can apply to all schools in Pleiku and mandate lower driving speeds near school zones. Through collaboration with government officials to publicize Pleiku People’s Committee’s passage of the school zone definition decision, AIP Foundation will play an instrumental role in the advocacy of provincial road safety legislation.