TUYEN QUANG PROVINCE, Vietnam—January 11, 2021

With road traffic injuries being a leading cause of death and injury worldwide, this results in a major public health issue, especially in low- and middle-income countries. In Vietnam, where 2-wheel transportation is an increasingly common transport, head and neck protection becomes a primary concern in preventing death. AIP Foundation tackles this issue head on in three provinces significantly increasing the helmet-wearing rate to 86% where pre-intervention rates were as low as 15%.

Through the Helmets for Kids program, supported by Johnson & Johnson, AIP Foundation conducted midterm review workshops in Thai Nguyen, Yen Bai, and Tuyen Quang Provinces to assess progress made since the Program’s implementation last year. With over 5,000 distributed, the Program reported a 71% increase in helmet-wearing rate post-intervention. Not only does helmet intervention save families, many of whom live in poverty, healthcare costs associated with crashes, but helmets also decrease the risk and severity of injuries that children may encounter in the event of a collision by about 72%.

In addition to the distribution of protective equipment, both students and teachers participated in “edutainment” activities focused on proper helmet use and skills to navigate and use roads safely early on in the Program’s implementation.

The midterm review workshops discussed achievements made in each province, along with challenges and how to effectively work through the challenges in the future. Representatives from each province’s Traffic Safety Committee (TSC), Department of Education and Training (DoET), and Bureau of Education and Training (BoET), school administrators from 16 project schools, and AIP Foundation were in attendance for each province’s respective workshop.

With low helmet-wearing rates, roads with high traffic from highways, railways, and bypasses between communes, and high poverty rates, the Helmets for Kids program, supported by Johnson & Johnson since 2004, aims to improve road safety knowledge, provide high-quality helmets to students and teachers at program schools who become role models and educate parents as key decision-makers in their children’s helmet use. These approaches ensure communities are equipped and better able to reduce the risks of losing their main mode of transportation or medical costs, which would force them into deeper poverty.