Hosted by the Government of Brazil on 18-19 November 2015 in Brasilia, Brazil, and co-sponsored by WHO, the 2nd Global High-Level Conference on Road Safety represented a historic opportunity to chart progress at the mid-point of the Decade of Action for Road Safety 2011-2020.
At the close of the Conference, the 2200 delegates adopted the “Brasilia Declaration on Road Safety” through which they agreed ways to halve road traffic deaths by the end of this decade – a key milestone within the new Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) target 3.6.
Developed through an intergovernmental process involving consultation with other stakeholders, the Brasilia Declaration is a call to rethink transport policies in order to favour more sustainable modes of transport such as walking, cycling and using public transport. It highlights strategies to ensure the safety of all road users, particularly by improving laws and enforcement; making roads safer through infrastructural modifications; ensuring that vehicles are equipped with life-saving technologies; and enhancing emergency trauma care systems. The Brasilia Declaration encourages WHO and partners to facilitate the development of targets to reduce road traffic crashes and fatalities, and support the definition and use of indicators linked to the SDG targets related to road safety.