Safe mobility for children is the motto that mobilizes the Gonzalo Rodriguez Foundation, which is currently implementing its program “Safe Latin American Children in Transit” in 5 Argentine cities (Junín, Guaymallén, Neuquén, Jujuy and Corrientes).
The Gonzalo Rodríguez Foundation is a non-profit government organization created in Uruguay in 2000 in memory of the Uruguayan pilot Gonzalo “Gonchi Rodriguez” who died on the “Laguna Seca” runway in the United States.
Based in Uruguay, the organization has a strong regional focus on Latin America and the Caribbean, and its main objective is to promote safe mobility for children, in order to contribute to reducing the number of injuries and deaths due to traffic accidents.
Through it, the safety of school environments was evaluated and recommendations are currently being provided to improve their infrastructure. Added to this is the campaign “Don’t repeat it this year”, which seeks to be a warning against bad behavior among road users.
In addition, the Foundation is initiating the project “Raising awareness among novice motorcyclists in Argentina”, which, thanks to funding from the UPS Foundation, seeks to train young motorcycle drivers who acquire their first driving license, informing and raising awareness about the necessary precautions when using a motorcycle.
In parallel, the program is being developed “Child passenger safety”, through which the Foundation trains Argentine representatives to promote the correct use of SRI from their areas of action, at all levels. Thanks to this, it is expected that in a short time, there will be a Check Point (1) fixed in Argentina.
“We want to continue contributing, through the programs we implement in Argentina, to reduce road accidents, so that children can move around in a safe and healthy way. According to data provided by the Road Observatory of the National Road Safety Agency, the rate of use of Child Restraint Systems is less than 50% and we understand that with the work we do at FGR we will achieve that the population becomes truly aware of the problem.”, said Maria Fernanda Rodriguez, president of the Gonzalo Rodriguez Foundation.
Children: Learning to hold them to life
According to official figures, in Argentina during 2017 more than 5.611 people died as victims of traffic accidents, with 320 of the victims being between 0 and 14 years old. Meanwhile, the correct use of child restraints installed correctly reduces up to 70% of deaths among children under one year of age and between 54 and 80% of deaths among young children.
Given the positive results of the work that the Foundation has been carrying out in Argentina, it decided to expand its lines of action, formally registering as a civil society organization in the country.
During the launch of the Foundation's new initiative in Argentina, authorities from the Ministry of Transport of the Nation, the ambassador of Uruguay, Dr. Héctor Lescano, María Fernanda Rodríguez, president of the Gonzalo Rodríguez Foundation, as well as actors and representatives of companies committed to the cause and the programs carried out by the organization in Argentina will participate.
(1) The Check Point is a space in which Certified Technicians of the Foundation verify the correct installation of the Child Restraint System (CRS) and advise families on its correct use.
DATE: May 15, 2019
TIME: 18:30
LOCATION: Uruguay's Residence in Argentina, Figueroa Alcorta 3316, CABA.
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