Background and approach
The Delft Road Safety Course for Low- and Middle-Income Countries was first organised in 2012 at the Delft University of Technology and was greatly appreciated by its participants. Because of its success, the course has been organized annually ever since. The is offered by Delft Road Safety Courses (DRSC), hosted at the Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands, in association with the FIA Foundation. Both organizations can build on several successful years of running this and similar training programmes.
The course focuses on educating professionals in the field of road safety in low and middle-income countries (LIMC). It is an initiative by the Delft University of Technology, Delft Post Graduate Education, Road Safety for All and SWOV Institute for Road Safety Research.
The course focuses on organizational subjects (policy development, agenda and target setting, implementation of action plans, financing, research programmes) and safety measures in the area of engineering, enforcement and education. A central question to be dealt with is how to implement the principles that underpin the so-called Safe Systems approach in LIMC’s.
Participants learn how to develop a Road Safety Plan and how to set up local programmes. All lectures, discussions and course materials are in English.
Train the trainers
The philosophy behind this postgraduate course is straightforward. We support the development of road safety strategies and academic educational programmes in the LMICs, i.e. both at universities and for policymakers.
The course teaches you how to make a sound analysis of road safety problems. It will also give you a deep understanding of the effectiveness and efficiency of interventions using the growing global scientific evidence base. We focus on how to get good (problem-oriented and evidence-based) road safety strategies implemented. At the end of the course, participants will be able to make a Road Safety Plan and to support the development of programmes in the area of education, enforcement and engineering. Our train-the-trainers approach also assists participants in developing courses in their homeland.
After completing the course, the learning process continues through an active alumni network. The alumni network provides relevant information on new developments in the field of road safety and facilitates discussions between those involved in the course (fellow participants, course leader, lecturers and partners in this course). This alumni network is an integral and highly valued part of our course.
Our initiative strongly supports the United Nations Decade of Action for Road Safety 2021 – 2030. Capacity building is a key component for improving road safety in LMICs. In this context, DRSC offers a unique opportunity for the professional development of road safety professionals. Developing human capacity in road safety is a vital activity for ensuring local sustainability.
