The FIA Foundation has brought together a range of partners in Mexico to develop a commitment to deliver on policy priorities for adolescents and youth.

The Foundation is working closely with the Mexican Government, UN agencies, civil society and youth organisations to plan a commitment which would be launched at the 2023 High Level Summit on the Sustainable Development Goals, and Global Forum for Adolescents which follows it. The Global Forum is being convened by PMNCH - the global partnership for women, children and adolescents - with FIA Foundation playing a leading role in supporting the group coordinating it.

The coalition developing the commitment in Mexico will identify which priority policy areas will be addressed. Road safety is likely to be an important focus of the commitment, with the FIA Foundation’s partner ITDP Mexico collaborating with partners generating the commitment. Other areas likely to be addressed include: adolescent pregnancy and early marriage, gender based violence, education and skills, youth participation in policy making.

Work on the commitment began during 20-24 February in Mexico City. The FIA Foundation joined UNFPA which convened all UN agencies in Mexico to start planning. The Mexican Government will lead further development with its national youth agency ‘IMJUVE’ at the forefront. Other agencies supporting include UNICEF, UNESCO, and the national agency for women, ‘INMUJERES’.

Leading Mexican Congresswoman Cynthia Lopez Castro has been working with the FIA Foundation to build support for the commitment across political parties. She has championed the rights of young people and recently introduced legislation in the Federal Congress for 20km/h and 30km/h speed limits around school areas.

FIA Foundation Deputy Director Avi Silverman, was invited by Congresswoman Castro to brief Mexico’s Federal Congress on the initiative. Speaking at a session alongside the leaders of all major Congress Committees, he highlighted the FIA Foundation’s advocacy report “Unfinished Journey” which called for a much greater political and financial commitment on major priorities for young people, including road safety, and first proposed a global summit.

He said: “The work to develop a national commitment for the young people of Mexico is of enormous importance both for the country, and the global adolescent agenda as a whole. It’s a privilege to be working alongside partners who are taking such a focused and systematic approach to strengthening the policy and programmatic response for adolescents and young people. It’s rare that people from different sectors can come together and collaborate so effectively. The work that we are supporting on road safety in Mexico is quite rightly a major part of an overall effort which we hope will lead to significant outcomes for the health and wellbeing of young people in the country. This is a powerful example of a highly innovative advocacy initiative, focused on achieving impact.”

In addition to working with the UN agencies and other partners, he also briefed the office of Mexico’s Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard, met with Mayor of Mexico City Claudia Sheinbaum and the city’s sustainable urban mobility department.

ITDP are playing an active role in the initiative. The Foundation has been supporting ITDP Mexico in it’s work on road safety and sustainable mobility. ITDP Mexico has been implementing programmes on Vision Zero for Youth, school area road safety, speed management, urban sustainable mobility. ITDP has also been active in the FIA Foundation’s helmet coalition as motorcycle safety is a growing concern in Mexico.