Two bold new programmes aimed at reducing preventable deaths among children were announced yesterday, October 20. They will target traffic accidents and drownings, respectively, by lowering speed limits near schools and introducing swimming lessons.
Launched by the Ministry of Interior, with support from UNICEF and partners, it is hoped that the campaigns will save thousands of lives.
Road traffic injuries and drowning are two of the leading causes of child mortality in Cambodia.
In 2023 alone, road crashes killed 1,590 people — an average of five deaths per day — and injured more than 4,500, with children and young people paying the heaviest price. Cambodia is among the top third of countries in East Asia and the Pacific with the highest road traffic death statistics for children and adolescents.
Drowning is the leading cause of death for Cambodian children aged 5-14, explained a joint press release. It is estimated that 1,300 people are lost to the Kingdom’s canals, ponds and waterways annually, with a drowning rate of almost 7.6 per 100,000 people.
To make roads safer for children, Safe School Zones will be established in selected areas. They will feature safe drop-off zones, pedestrian crossings and signs, as well as a speed limit of 30 km/h.
Practical road safety education will be provided for students, teachers, parents and local authorities, while wider public awareness campaigns will reinforce safe behaviours and reach families nationwide.
Increased enforcement of traffic laws will also be a feature of the campaign.
To address the Kingdom’s drowning epidemic, children in high-risk communities will be taught learning survival swimming and water safety, while caregivers will receive guidance on supervising children near rivers, ponds and flood zones. This programme will be scalable across Cambodia.
Alongside the campaign, the government is launching the country’s first National Strategic Plan on Drowning Prevention (2025–2030) and empowering local authorities to integrate water safety into their planning and budgeting.
“Climate change is increasing these risks: more intense and frequent monsoon rainfalls are causing severe flooding, which puts children at a higher risk of drowning, while extreme weather events increase the risk of road traffic injuries,” interior minister Sar Sokha was quoted as saying in the press release.
Will Parks, UNICEF representative to Cambodia, noted that every child has the right to grow up in a safe environment, yet every year children are killed or injured in ways that everyone knows how to prevent.
“Whether it’s by wearing a helmet properly, slowing down near schools, teaching children to swim or raising awareness about water safety, the solutions are clear. Together, we can and must stop these preventable tragedies by driving transformative change and placing child injury prevention at the very heart of community action, policy and public awareness,” he added.
