First National Road Safety Conference held in Karachi - Apr 24, 2007 KARACHI.Indus Motor Company (IMC), in collaboration with the Sindh Education Foundation (SEF) and Road Injury Research and Prevention Centre (JPMC), organized the first National Road Safety Conference at a local hotel. The conference is part of the activities being organized during the UN Global Road Safety Week (23 29 April), and included participation from senior government officials, provincial ministers as well as stakeholders from the industry, NGOs, education, health, engineering, law enforcement, etc. The National Road Safety Conference, the first of its kind to be held in Pakistan, aimed at initiating a dialogue on road safety issues. It also provided an opportunity to share the results of the Road Traffic Injury Research Project, an IMC sponsored initiative conducted in partnership with JPMC and NED University. The highlight of the conference was the development of recommendations through various working sessions focusing on the specific roles of the health, corporate, education, enforcement and engineering sectors in improving road safety. At the occasion, Parvez Ghias, CEO of Indus Motor Company said, ‘With the increasing vehicle population, it is important to minimize traffic accidents and traffic congestion. Toyota, has undertaken this social task as an extremely important issue, on par with continued measures to improve vehicle performance and reduce environmental impact. We are aiming for a substantial reduction in traffic deaths and injuries and are taking traffic safety initiatives by viewing people, vehicles and traffic environment as an integrated whole.’ Mr. Ghias informed the audience of Indus Motor’s determination to take a comprehensive approach with initiatives such as educating children, drivers and pedestrians, while also undertaking other initiatives in health, environment, etc., under the company’s CSR banner of ‘Concern Beyond Cars’. He added, ‘As a member of the United Nations Global Compact, we want to make a difference towards having safer roads in Pakistan. Prof Anita Ghulam Ali, Managing Director of the Sindh Education Foundation added, ‘The objective of this event has been to raise awareness about the societal impact of road traffic injuries and promote action to address key factors that have a major impact on preventing road traffic injuries. The Conference has highlighted the role that various stakeholders should take to improve road safety. Indus Motor Company, a joint venture of Toyota Motor Corporation, Japan and The House of Habib, Pakistan, has been at the forefront of creating awareness about the societal impact of road traffic accidents and promoting actions that have a major impact on preventing road traffic injuries. A number of initiatives taken by IMC in this regard include the Road Traffic Injury Research Project (with JPMC, AKU, NED), Road Safety School Campaign (with WWF), Toyota Road Safety School Concerts (with FESF), emission testing of vehicles, etc. Other initiatives scheduled during the UN Global Road Safety Week include Free Road Safety Checkups of vehicles at Toyota authorized dealerships and a Toyota Road Safety Walk. More Pictures