Speech of Antonio Guterres on the World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims

The World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims reveals a dark reality: Every year, 1.35 million lives are cut short by road traffic accidents and another 50 million suffer life-changing injuries.

We must do more to avoid these entirely preventable tragedies.

The Global Plan for the Decade of Action for Road Safety, now in its third year, aims to halve road deaths by building capacity, accelerating the implementation of the United Nations Convention on Road Safety, raising awareness and mobilizing resources to improve traffic safety.

This year, we are also launching a global Road Safety campaign that will reach 1,000 cities in 80 countries. Our UN Road Safety Fund is funding operations in low- and middle-income countries, where about 90 per cent of traffic casualties occur.

Urgent action remains imperative. I appeal to all donors to increase urgently needed financial and technical contributions. On this World Day, let us join hands to make roads safer for everyone, everywhere.