31 January 2024, Panama City, Panama  – UNITAR, in collaboration with the General Secretariat of the Land Transit and Transportation Authority of Panama and partners from the private sector, conducted a road safety workshop on the UNITAR Management Practices for Safer Roads Toolkit. The workshop primarily targeted government officials and other members of the public sector involved in road safety-related activities across Panama.

For the first time, UNITAR introduced the Management Practices for Safer Roads Toolkit in Panama. This is an interactive online learning tool that incorporates a management methodology and a plan designed to enhance road safety by collecting data on the number and location of deaths caused by traffic collisions. It identifies dangerous and critical locations on the road where excessive traffic collisions occur, outlines corrective measures, and implements interventions while monitoring results.

The road safety workshop aims to create awareness about the Management Practices for Safer Roads Toolkit with the following objectives:

1. Identify and comprehend the main problems, trends, and challenges in road safety globally and in Panama.
2. Outline key global frameworks and objectives related to road safety and acknowledge road safety as an urgent priority.
3. Present the principles and benefits of the problem-solving methodology: Plan-Do-Check-Act (PDCA) to address road safety.
4. Provide practical examples for the implementation of the Management Practices for Safer Roads Toolkit.

UNITAR successfully trained 47 government officials and public sector members from institutions such as the Police, Ministry of Health, Ministry of Security, and Road Safety Statistics Department, among others. Participants expressed satisfaction with the road safety workshop.

In addition, an analysis of different sections in major roads including Avenida Nicanor de Obarrio, Avenida Ricardo Alfaro, and Via Centenario was conducted with the objective of identifiyng critical areas where road traffic crashes happen and the victim profile, as well as outlining corrective measures to reduce crashes, injuries and fatalities. The results of the analysis were presented in the workshop and a report handed out to the General Secretariat of the Land Transit and Transportation Authority of Panama with proposed recommendations based on collaboration.