London, UK, April 27, 2011 – His Royal Highness Prince Michael of Kent has presented Safe Kids Worldwide and FedEx with his International Road Safety Award for the Safe Kids Walk This Way program. He presented his award at a reception to mark the forthcoming Decade of Action for Road Safety as declared by the United Nations.
Through Safe Kids Walk This Way, FedEx and Safe Kids Worldwide are making communities around the world safer places for children to play, explore and navigate streets through youth-focused pedestrian safety programs. The program began in 2000 and since then expanded from the U.S. alone to a total of nine countries. Since program inception, it has engaged more than 4 million child participants.
“The ‘Safe Kids Walk This Way’ program is already proving to be an important contribution to making roads safer in the developing world,” said HRH Prince Michael of Kent. “I congratulate FedEx for its substantial support for the program through an investment worth millions of dollars. It is an outstanding example of how major corporations can make a real contribution to saving lives.”
“A staggering 720 children die across the globe from road traffic crashes every day. FedEx and Safe Kids Worldwide influence traffic legislation through public policy initiatives to help children,” said John Formisano, president and CEO of Safe Kids Worldwide. “In addition, together we help change unsafe behaviors in children through education on how to safely travel to and from school, equip teachers and parents with tools to keep kids safe, and create safer environments through infrastructure improvements such as improved crosswalks, signs and sidewalks.”
Added Formisano, “FedEx has helped the program expand from only the U.S. to eight additional countries, and the program elements are flexible, allowing local communities to customize the program based on its culture and specific needs. It is vitally important, especially in low- and middle-income countries, to raise awareness about child pedestrian safety, where the idea of prevention is only now beginning to gain momentum.”
Safe Kids Walk this Way delivers benefits to communities in three ways:
- Child safety research and environmental assessments identify risks in communities;
- School curricula, events and educational tools teach safe behaviors; and
- Infrastructure improvements address the root cause of many child injuries and deaths – unsafe roadways.
The Global Decade of Action for Road Safety
Thousands of people are killed or injured in road crashes each day, and it is projected that annual road traffic deaths will increase to 1.9 million people by 2020.[1] To help bring needed attention to this dire issue, the United National General Assembly has declared a Decade of Action to stabilise and ultimately reduce the projected forecast of road traffic deaths and injuries worldwide by 2020.
About Prince Michael International Road Safety Awards
Since 1987 HRH Prince Michael of Kent has made his awards in recognition of outstanding achievement and innovation in road safety. Now his awards recognize organizations which will make a significant contribution to reducing death and injury on the world’s roads during the Decade of Action.
About Safe Kids Worldwide
Safe Kids Worldwide is a global network of organizations whose mission is to prevent unintentional childhood injury, the leading cause of death and disability to children ages 1 to 14. 18 member countries and more than 600 coalitions and chapters across the U.S. bring together health and safety experts, educators, corporations, foundations, governments and volunteers to educate and protect families. For more information visit http://www.safekids.org/worldwide/
About FedEx Corp.
FedEx Corp. (NYSE: FDX) provides customers and businesses worldwide with a broad portfolio of transportation, e-commerce and business services. With annual revenues of $38 billion, the company offers integrated business applications through operating companies competing collectively and managed collaboratively, under the respected FedEx brand. Consistently ranked among the world’s most admired and trusted employers, FedEx inspires its more than 290,000 team members to remain “absolutely, positively” focused on safety, the highest ethical and professional standards and the needs of their customers and communities. For more information, visit newsroom.fedex.com/news.
[1] World Health Organization, 2010.