Philippines wins the 4th iRAP Asia Pacific Award

Following success in Malaysia, Viet Nam and New Zealand, this year it was the Philippines’ turn to win the 4th Intenrational Road Assessment Programme (iRAP) Asia Pacific Award for 2011, granted on 8 March during the Asia Seminar. “We are surprised that iRAP had chosen the Philippines, and we are also very thankful”, said Bert Suansing, Executive Director of the Philippine Global Road Safety Partnership (PGRSP).  

The International Road Assessment Program Award for Asia Pacific is given on an annual basis to iRAP “star performers”. This year, the competition was tough.

“The Philippines won the award because they have outstanding leadership and really strong partnership”, explained Greg Smith, iRAP Asia Pacific Director. “They have the highway authority, NGOs, policy makers, and the President of the Philippines, Benigno Aquino, personally involved in the project. We find the best success road safety programmes are those with strong leadership”, he stated.

The Philippine Global Road Safety Partnership recently surveyed approximately 3,500 km of their road  networks, including those that at the highest risk. Based on the survey results, PGRSP was able to evaluate the situation of road safety in the country, with the main outcome being a set of recommendations to prioritize the building of footpaths and safe crossing points to protect pedestrians.

“At first, we were a bit skeptical when the survey was being conducted”, admits Suansing. “But when we began getting the initial results, it fell in line with our production plan, and we are now making great progress”.

The next phase of the project focuses on effectively implementing the proposed recommendations. PGRSP will work hard over the next 12 months to ensure that safety barriers are put into place, intersections are improved, and pedestrian crossings are built.

For more information contact Ian Hughes at ian.hughes@ifrc.org