Boracay hosts ASEAN transport officials meeting

BY BOY RYAN B. ZABAL

This August, transport government officials of ASEAN member-states will gather in Boracay Island to discuss plans to improve road safety and promote safe travel in South East Asian region.

The 5th Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Multi-Sector Road Safety Sub-Working Group and 23rd ASEAN Land Transport Working Group (LTWG) Meeting will take place in Crown Regency Resort and Convention Center in Barangay Manoc-Manoc from August 12 to 15.

The annual gathering of top transport government officials from Vietnam, Myanmar, Indonesia, Singapore, Brunei Darussalam, Laos, Malaysia, Thailand and host Philippines will carry out the regional action plan, comprehensive, coordinated and integrated road safety policies and programs for the next five years that have significant impact on the region.

The ASEAN Multi-Sector Road Safety Working Group was established to coordinate and oversee the implementation of the ASEAN Road Safety Strategy and regional road safety action plan with the assistance of the ASEAN Secretariat.

The progress reports of implementation are submitted at the annual ASEAN Transport Ministers Meeting (ATM) for further action. 

In 2010, the member-countries adopted the ASEAN Strategic Transport Plan (ASTP) 2011-2015, a comprehensive plan and assessment of the current transport situation in ASEAN and of the achievements in the implementation of the ATAP and other related plans. 

Under the ASEAN Strategic Transport Plan, strategic actions are implemented in the period 2011-2015 to support ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) by 2015 and to enhance regional connectivity in the Master Plan on ASEAN Connectivity (MPAC).

According to ASTP, the road safety problem in the ASEAN region has reached alarming proportion, with over 75,000 deaths and 4.7 million injuries occurring annually, causing very serious physical, psychological and material harm to the victims and their families. 

It also had huge economic loss of over US$ 15 billion each year to the ASEAN region as a whole.

The collective responsibility between the different ministries, civil societies, communities, the private and business sectors to provide safe travel environment to ASEAN road users will also reduce the number of deaths, injuries and economic losses over the next five years.