The global safety charity iRAP is urging heads of state and governments to participate in the upcoming United Nations High-Level Meeting on Road Safety.
The iRAP letter campaign is to help prevent more than 600,000 deaths and millions of injuries each year, thus achieving the target of a 50 per cent reduction in deaths and injuries by 2030 as set out in the Decade of Action for Road Safety.
The UN event will be convened by the president of the UN General Assembly and the World Health Organisation. The 2026 High-level Meeting theme is ‘Scaling up and accelerating implementation of commitments to halving road traffic deaths and injuries by 2030′. It will bring heads of state and government ministers and officials together with UN, civil society, academia, the private sector and philanthropic foundations.
A concise and action-orientated declaration of intent will be agreed upon in advance by intergovernmental negotiation and published after the UN High-level Meeting. While not legally binding, it carries significant political weight.
iRAP holds UN ECOSOC (Economic and Social Council) Consultative Status which is granted by the United Nations to non-governmental organisations, or NGOs, to allow them to participate in the work of the UN.
Under its UN ECOSOC Consultative Status, iRAP has sent letters to leaders of over 160 countries via their UN Permanent Mission which outline national progress and the business case for safer roads in each country. The letters urge national leaders to actively participate in the High-Level Meeting.
National leaders should support the Kyrgyz Republic and Slovak Republic permanent missions to the UN in preparing a bold and decisive statement to save lives and prevent injuries. They should also assess progress made towards achieving national road safety commitments.
In a written statement, iRAP said national leaders should share road safety successes as an inspiration for continued, life-saving action. They need to renew commitments to bold action on safety, ensuring that the necessary institutional and financial mechanisms are in place.
The International Road Assessment Programme – iRAP – is a UK-based global charity dedicated to eliminating high risk roads globally by using a “robust, evidence-based approach” to prevent injuries and deaths. It works with governments, road authorities, mobility clubs, development banks, NGOs and research organisations to, among other things, inspect high-risk roads and develop its Star Ratings for road safety performance, produce risk maps and set out plans for safer roads investment. It will also provide training, technology and support that will build and sustain national, regional and local capability.
