2nd National Road Safety Conference 2009 held in Karachi - Jul 7, 2009 Indus Motor Company (IMC) and Shell Pakistan in partnership with the Aga Khan University, Sindh Education Foundation and the Road Traffic Injury Research Centre (Ministry of Health) organized the 2nd National Road Safety Conference (NRSC) on July 7, 2009 at the Aga Khan University Auditorium, Karachi. Dr Arbab Alamgir Khan, Federal Minister Communication was the Chief Guest at the event. The conference was also attended by regulatory body dignitaries and stakeholders from the corporate, education, health, road traffic systems and the engineering sectors. The conference was opened with a speech from Mr Zaiviji Ismail, Managing Director, Shell Pakistan, who discussed global road safety initiatives, and was followed by a presentation on the importance of road safety from Mr Parvez Ghias, CEO, Indus Motor Company. During the conference, Dr Rashid Jooma, DG Ministry of Health, unveiled the results of Road Traffic Injury Research Project (RTIRP) which was initiated by Indus Motor back in 2006 in partnership with JPMC, AKUH & NED University to collect accurate data of Road accident cases received by five major hospitals of Karachi. More than 85,000 injuries and fatalities have been recorded during Sept 2006 – Mar 2009, with over 32,000 cases being recorded in 2008 alone. The results highlighted that motorcyclepillion riders are the most vulnerable road user group which account for 60% of all road traffic injuries. Further, more than 50% of motorcycle riders are under the age of 25 and 80% of fatalities amongst riders are caused by head injury. He requested the concerned authorities to enforce helmet laws so that injuries and deaths due to head impact are reduced. At the occasion, Dr Arbab Alamgir Khan, Federal Minister of Communication, acknowledged the efforts of Indus Motor Company and Shell Pakistan for bringing the road safety issue to a national forum and mentioned that the Ministry of Communication endorsed the ‘National Road Safety Forum’, which can become an effective platform for various stakeholders to come together for making our roads safer. He mentioned that a national road safety policy needed to be developed with focus on motorcycles and heavy vehicles traffic safety. The key note speakers highlighted the challenges of enforcement for motorcycle riders, their injury pattern and vehicle and engineering standards. The panel discussion focused on the acceptance and implementation of traffic laws. The deliberations at the 2nd NRSC highlighted a number of road safety issues in light of RTIRP data of road accident cases, with specific focus on the most vulnerable road user group i.e. motorcyclepillion riders, and suggested intervention measures for road accidents reduction.