Important new measures to protect the safety and lives of children in vehicles were passed by strong majorities in the Viet Nam National Assembly in June 2024.
The changes to the Law of Road Traffic Order and Safety require children under 10 years of age to sit in the back seat of vehicles. They also require children to be secured in an approved child restraint system (also known as a CRS or child car seat) if they are under 10 years and 135cm tall. Children must be seated in the rear of a car and child safety restraints used from 1 January 2026.
For children, the rear seat is the safest place. In a crash, children who are sitting in the back seat but who are not in a safety restraint have their risk of injury reduced by 26%, compared to children sitting in the front. Even children in a restraint are 14% safer in the rear than in the front. Child safety restraints have been shown to reduce deaths in crashes by up to 71% among younger infants.
For children, the rear seat is the safest place. Photo credit: Center for Injury Policy and Prevention Research, HUPH
Globally and in Viet Nam, road traffic injuries are a leading cause of death for children and young adults aged 5 to 29 years.
World Health Organization (WHO) Representative for Viet Nam Dr Angela Pratt said, “With a rapid rise in motor vehicles on Viet Nam’s roads, it has become more and more urgent to protect the safety and lives of children while they are travelling in cars. With these decisions, the Government and National Assembly have shown that mobility must not, and need not, come at a cost to young lives. These law changes are a vote for children’s safety, and will help realise the promise of safe mobility – especially for young people – in Viet Nam.”
Photo credit: Center for Injury Policy and Prevention Research, HUPH
WHO has been supporting the development of the laws for several years, working with the Ministry of Transport, the Ministry of Public Security, the Ministry of Health and National Assembly committees to provide policy advice and recommendations based on global evidence and best practice.
Crucial support for the changes came from partners the AIP Foundation, the Center for Health Consultation and Community Development (CHD), the Global Health Advocacy Incubator (GHAI), the Global Road Safety Partnership (GRSP) and the Hanoi University of Public Health (HUPH), and with generous funding from the Bloomberg Initiative for Global Road Safety (BIGRS).
The decisions of the National Assembly to adopt these revisions to road safety laws are in line with the Government’s national strategy on road traffic order and safety for 2021-2030, which aims to reduce road deaths and injuries by 5-10% annually. Once implemented, they will also contribute to the targets of the United Nations’ Global Plan for the Decade of Action on Road Safety for 2021-2030, which Viet Nam has committed to. The Global Plan has the target of preventing at least 50% of road deaths and injuries by 2030, compared to 2021.
Photo credit: Center for Injury Policy and Prevention Research, HUPH
To help the Government roll out the changes, WHO will support the development of guidelines to implement and enforce the new laws.
Globally, WHO works with Member States and partners across sectors to support strengthening of road safety laws and policies, evaluation, implementation and planning. As the lead agency for road safety in the United Nations, WHO plays a key role in guiding global efforts by advocating for road safety at the highest levels, compiling and sharing good practices and raising awareness of road safety.
Road safety and drowning prevention are key priorities for the WHO Viet Nam Country Office’s work to reduce injuries, as part of the overall goal of contributing to a healthier and safer Viet Nam.