• Ford introduces Driving Skills for Life program in Vietnam, launching wider effort to advance basic safety measures in developing auto markets.
   
• Ford will train 200 taxi and bus drivers in Ho Chi Min City on important skills that simultaneously improve safety and fuel economy, then open program to public.
   
• The program will roll out to other Asia-Pacific countries, including the Philippines, Thailand and Indonesia in 2008 with plans to add more countries in 2009.
     
   

DEARBORN, Mich., July 23, 2008 - Ford is launching a new campaign to promote driving safety in developing countries with fast-growing populations of new drivers. 

The World Health Organization says the increase in new, inexperienced drivers could increase the world's auto-related fatalities to more than two million by 2020 unless basic safety measures - including seatbelt usage - are widely embraced.

Beginning in Vietnam this week, Ford is customizing its U.S.-based, teen-focused Driving Skills for Life program for teen and adult drivers in developing auto markets.  Ford will roll out similar programs in the Philippines, Thailand and Indonesia later this year, adding more countries in 2009.

"Ford is bringing safety measures long accepted in developed nations to the riskiest roads in the world," said Priya Prasad, Ford Technical Fellow, Safety, and member of the Global Road Safety Initiative.  "Ford's emphasis is on increasing safety belt usage - still the single most important automotive safety device - and helping inexperienced drivers identify and respond to potentially dangerous conditions."

Ford Vietnam is leading this initiative by hosting a Driving Skills for Life program in Ho Chi Minh City from July 24-27 in cooperation with the Asia Injury Prevention (AIP) Foundation and the Vietnam government's National Traffic Safety Committee (NTSC).  Training will be provided first to more than 200 taxi drivers and inter-provincial bus drivers, who will learn practical skills and techniques for both safe and fuel-efficient driving.  

Safety building blocks

Driving Skills for Life is offered free to program trainees, and mixes classroom learning and practical training to help increase awareness of safe driving techniques that also help improve fuel efficiency. The training has been customized for Vietnam to reflect the local driving environment and road conditions, and will be offered through a series of events open to the public.

"Road safety is a very serious issue in Vietnam, and also one that's highly relevant to our business. Driving Skills for Life is an ideal way for Ford and the AIP Foundation to work with the Vietnamese government and leverage our collective expertise to help make a difference in driver safety on Vietnam's roads," said Michael Pease, general director of Ford Vietnam.

Reducing road traffic accidents across the region is a key objective of the Driving Skills for Life program.  The World Health Organization estimates that road traffic accidents will become the third-leading cause of premature death worldwide for all ages by 2020, accounting for two million deaths every year versus 1.2 million today.  In Vietnam, road traffic accidents in 2007 were responsible for 12,800 deaths - nearly 300 percent more than in 2003 - and 10,266 injuries according to the Vietnamese government.

According to Greig Craft, president of the Asia Injury Prevention Foundation (AIPF), programs such as Driving Skills for Life are critical to address growing concerns about road safety in the emerging markets of Asia and Africa.  AIPF, which is already well-known throughout Vietnam and is a member of the United Nations Road Safety Collaboration, is dedicated to public awareness and education programs on road safety.

"It is great to see Ford, a leader in safety, doing something about this critical issue," Craft said.  "In developing countries like Vietnam, motorization is happening so quickly that road traffic injuries and deaths are reaching an epidemic proportion.  People are taking to the road in ever-greater numbers, usually without the training to drive properly or the fundamental understanding of driving skills.  Driver training, education and public awareness are imperative to making a difference."

Making the Learning Experience Engaging

Key focal points of the training include the use of safety belts, recognizing and anticipating changing traffic conditions, avoiding distraction and maintaining a safe distance from other vehicles in traffic.

Economical driver training includes anticipating road conditions, applying fuel-efficient driving techniques, avoiding speeding and keeping a vehicle properly maintained. 
The introduction of Driving Skills for Life in Southeast Asia is made possible by a Ford GlobalGiving Campaign grant.  This is the first Asian initiative for Ford GlobalGiving, which is a campaign of the Ford Motor Company Fund and Community Services.

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About Ford Motor Company
Ford Motor Company, a global automotive industry leader based in Dearborn, Mich., manufactures or distributes automobiles in 200 markets across six continents. With about 228,000 employees and about 90 plants worldwide, the company's core and affiliated automotive brands include Ford, Lincoln, Mercury, Volvo and Mazda. The company provides financial services through Ford Motor Credit Company. For more information regarding Ford's products, please visit www.ford.com.