The Philippines will participate in the 4th Global Ministerial Conference on Road Safety in Morocco next February, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said as he reiterated the government’s commitment to make the country’s roads safer for all Filipinos.

The President met with UN Secretary-General’s Special Envoy for Road Safety Jean Todt in Malacañang on Thursday to discuss the Philippines’ progress on road safety.

“We welcomed the UN Secretary-General’s Special Envoy for Road Safety, Jean Todt, back to Manila to discuss the progress we have made and the steps forward to improve road safety across the Philippines, in line with the 2021-2030 Decade of Action for Road Safety Goals,” Marcos said .

“In Bagong Pilipinas, our roads are built to connect and protect, bringing people together safely. We are committed to making our roads safer for all Filipinos, and the Philippines will proudly join the global dialogue at the upcoming ministerial conference in Morocco,” he added.

The Global Road Safety Conference will be held in Marrakech, Morocco, from 18 to 20 February 2025, to assess the progress made in the implementation of the Global Plan 2021-2030 during the first five-year period to generate support for the new vision of safe and sustainable mobility.

Marcos appreciated the meeting with Todt in the Philippines, stressing the importance of reducing road accidents in the country, especially those involving motorcycles.

He said the UN envoy, who has traveled to advocate for road safety, could guide the Philippines to make its roads safer.

“I’m happy to meet you because I’ve watched you over the years … and because we have safety issues, especially for motorcycles. We have about 15 million Filipino riders in the country,” the president told Todt.

“They have the highest rate of accidents, both fatal and non-fatal. It’s really on two wheels. So that’s really what we’re very concerned about,” he added.

The president also agreed to Todt’s proposal to establish a task force – members to be drawn from the education, health and both public and private sectors – to work alongside the United Nations on road safety initiatives.

Regarding Todt’s recommendation to produce more durable helmets to ensure rider safety, Marcos said collaboration with the private sector would be important, with government support in place to ensure a stable market.

This initiative could potentially involve government subsidies to reduce costs, encourage riders to use helmets that meet safety standards, he added.

Todt also visited the Philippines last April to advocate for the effective implementation of the UN Global Plan for the Decade of Action on Road Safety 2021-2030.

The World Health Organization’s 2018 Global Status Report on Road Safety showed an increasing trend in road traffic fatalities in the Philippines, with a fatality rate of 12.3 per 100,000 population, compared to a fatality rate of 9.3 per 100,000 population in Europe.

The Philippines’ cooperation with the UN development system is described in the Philippines 2024-2028 UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (UNSDCF).

The UNSDCF serves as a strategic framework for UN cooperation with the Philippines, aimed at supporting national development priorities, including the country’s transition to an upper-middle-income economy and the achievement of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.