HCM City (VNA) — Asia Injury Prevention (AIP)Foundation, the National Traffic Safety Committee and the Ministry of Educationand Training have expanded the Helmets for Kids programme to rural communitiesin the provinces of Yen Bai, Thai Nguyen and Tuyen Quang.

These provinces are home to a significant number of ethnicminorities, who face a number of challenges in accessing mainstream servicesand resources.

The life-saving interventions under the programme includehelmet distribution and educational activities focused on safe helmet use.

The very first event of the programme expansion was hosted in Yen Bai province on November 13.

The programme, which is supported by Johnson & Johnson,aims to reduce brain injuries related to road crashes in school zones and thesurrounding communities through increased ratio of quality helmet use amongchildren.

The programme will begin with a helmet donation ceremony ateach project school and be accompanied by an ‘edutainment’ event involving aseries of interactive games focusing on proper helmet use. 

Across 16 schools, 7,375 students, 451 teachers and staff,local authorities, and community members will participate in the edutainmentactivities.

Jun Hong Park, managing director of Johnson & JohnsonVietnam, said: “The reality is that every day a child leaves their home to goto school without proper safety equipment like a helmet, they are at risk onthe road.

“We need to play an urgent, proactive role in empoweringcommunities with proper road safety knowledge and resources related to helmetuse, whether it is on a motorbike or bicycle, so that wearing a helmet becomesinstinctive and natural rather than a novelty. Something as simple as wearing ahelmet can be the difference in that child coming back home to their familyhappy and healthy.”

Hoang Na Huong, deputy CEO of AIP Foundation, said:“Education is fundamental to breaking the cycle of poverty. However, barrierslike unsafe commutes, lack of school zones and low community awareness of roadsafety and speed limit compliance prevent students, and often their families,from living a better life.

“Programmes like Helmets for Kids help raise the quality oflife standard for communities, especially for our young people.” 

Helmets for Kids focuses on increasing the helmet-wearingrate among children in areas where road crash and injury risks are high, butpreventative actions are low.

It helps improve road safety knowledge, provides qualityhelmets to students and teachers at programme schools, and educates parents askey decision makers in their children’s helmet use.

In 2020 it plans to distribute over 5,700 helmets./.