SKOPJE – The Transport Community’s 20th Road Safety Technical Committee and 10th Western Balkans Road Safety Observatory Meeting brought together regional and international road safety professionals in Skopje on 18-19 March 2025 to discuss developments and plans for improving road safety across the Western Balkans, Georgia, Moldova, and Ukraine.
The meeting discussed the progress made in enhancing road safety measures and reducing traffic-related fatalities across the region, and deliberated plans for the implementation of the Next Generation Action Plan for Road Safety 2025-2027.
Opening the meeting, Mr Matej Zakonjšek, Director of the Permanent Secretariat of the Transport Community, highlighted that most of the regional partners in the Western Balkans have road safety strategies in place, and the rest should follow. He added that each of the regional partners should establish dedicated road safety agencies/bodies, as they are a prerequisite for a comprehensive approach to enhancing road safety.
During the two-day event, the participants examined preliminary data on road traffic fatalities, as well as road safety campaigns such as the initiative of North Macedonia to encourage seat belt usage.
Discussions also centred around regional data collection practices, strategies for improving road safety within local road networks, and efforts to meet safety targets. International perspectives were also discussed, with updates from the World Health Organisation and the Eastern Partnership Road Safety Observatory.
Through events as these, the Transport Community aims to strengthen cooperation in the Western Balkans, improve data collection and analysis, and align the region’s efforts with European road safety standards.
