Transportation and Public Safety
Building an enabling environment
To create an environment that nurtures digital innovation and supports sustainable development proactive measures and collaborative support from diverse stakeholders are essential.
Acknowledgements
The report was prepared by an interdivisional task team under the overall direction and guidance of Armida Salsiah Alisjahbana Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations and Executive Secretary of ESCAP.
Seizing the Opportunity: Digital Innovation for a Sustainable Future
In an era of rapid digital transformation Asia and the Pacific is uniquely placed to leverage digital technologies to overcome sustainable development challenges. Already the region is recognized as a dynamic hub for digitally driven innovation fueled by pioneering technologies such as Artificial Intelligence Digital Finance GovTech and the Internet of Things. Yet to encourage further ingenuity and tap digital innovation to bolster the huge collective effort required to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals the region needs a plan. To help shape a coherent inclusive approach this report examines existing digital innovations which have accelerated progress towards sustainable development and explores ways to build on their successes. It proposes a framework to understand the interlinkages between digital innovation and sustainable development investigates current and emerging practices explores how an enabling environment might be created and provides recommendations for regional cooperation. To achieve the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development a deliberate strategic push is required. This report aims to inform this effort which ESCAP stands ready to support every step of the way.
Digital innovation: Case studies for the future
This chapter will illustrate how digital innovation can promote inclusive and sustainable development across Asia and the Pacific.
Foreword
Asia and the Pacific is at the forefront of a global digital transformation. Innovations in cognitive digital technologies digital finance government technology and the Internet of things are reshaping the way we do business deliver public services and protect people and our planet. Intelligently deployed and properly governed digital innovations could turbocharge sustainable development efforts. They could enable the extraordinary collective push that is required to achieve the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development at a time when progress is alarmingly slow. Yet for this to happen common understanding and shared approaches are needed across the region.
Digital innovation landscape in Asia and the Pacific
The Asia-Pacific region is rapidly becoming a hub for digitally-driven innovation supported by increasing numbers of cutting-edge digital technologies.
Regional cooperation for digital innovation and sustainable development
Regional cooperation can leverage the link between digital innovation and sustainable development in Asia and the Pacific.
Acknowledgements
This child and adolescent road safety report is a product of the UNICEF Regional Office of South Asia. The report was researched and prepared by Margie Peden Jane Elkington and Pratishtha Singh of The George Institute for Global Health.
Country profiles
Country specific information is included in the following profiles. The data included have been obtained from published information (see Appendix) and through a brief survey completed by UNICEF country surveys.
Why road traffic collisions need to be addressed
As the world struggles to address multiple global health issues it is possible to overlook the causes of death and disability that might be considered endemic. Road traffic injuries (RTIs) have been a leading cause of death of children over the age of one for many decades but we are now equipped with ample evidence to reduce this preventable cause of death and disability.
Child and adolescent road traffic situation in South Asia
The South Asian nations under the regional office of South Asia (Afghanistan Bangladesh Bhutan India Maldives Nepal Pakistan and Sri Lanka) have an estimated combined population of 1.856 billion or just under a quarter of the world’s 7.9 billion. This includes 708054 million children and young people under the age of 20.
Child and Adolescent Road Safety in South Asia
Low to lower-middle income nations bear 78 per cent of child road traffic injuries. Conversely high-income countries with robust safety measures account for just 3 per cent. This report outlines South Asia’s status country profiles assessment tools and guidance for effective action under the Safe Systems framework regarding child and adolescent road injuries. In 2019 injuries accounted for at least 9 per cent of the 12.2 million deaths in South Asia with approximately a quarter attributed to road traffic collisions. Among children and adolescents 171468 died from injuries with 29859 due to road traffic collisions the primary cause of injury-related death alongside drowning. The overall road traffic death rate was 6 per 100000 population though Afghanistan reported rates exceeding 16 per 100000. The region lost 2.5 million disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) due to such collisions among those under 20. With over 708 million children and adolescents in South Asia urgent governmental action is imperative given the substantial economic impact estimated to be billions of US dollars or 0.3 to 7.5 per cent of GDP. This report is intended to provide relevant information about the burden risk factors and interventions to address road traffic injuries among children and adolescents in the region. The target audience includes UNICEF staff in country and regional offices country level road safety and public health practitioners policy makers advocates and academics.
What puts children and adolescents more at risk?
Children and adolescents are more vulnerable to road traffic injuries than adults for a range of reasons. These reasons or risk factors can be classified as being non-modifiable or modifiable. In addition there are post-crash factors that place children at elevated risk of preventable serious injury or death in the event of being involved in road traffic crash.
What should be done?
In order to reduce road traffic injuries and deaths among children in the nations of South Asia road safety decision-makers and practitioners should agree a strategic approach that will optimize lives saved while simultaneously addressing practical considerations costs and local policy and planning contexts.