Participants should include large multinationals as well as smaller independent firms. Local firms have a particular stake in the business of road safety. The initiative could also look to include key business groups or associations, who would add value to the initiative by helping to identify case studies and to disseminate lessons learned. Businesses are generally willing to invest more in partnerships when the business benefit is as clear as the moral or social imperative. In so doing, companies are building stable reputations and brands, increasing profits, expanding markets, and critically reducing the risk inherent to any foreign investment.
Partnerships build trust, mutual respect, and an expressed commitment to common goals.
Increased trust means improved risk management and improved bottom-line performance. The World Bank Group involvement would be coordinated by the Transport Sector Board, in collaboration with the Business Partners for Development Team. The World Bank Group can also make an immediate connection with government ministries and relevant technical and field expertise both from within the WBG and from outside. For example, the Road Safety Partnership would benefit from the large portion of World Bank Group involvement in transport infrastructure development to coordinate and implement country-focused strategies on road safety. As part of its core business in this sector, the World Bank Group lends, upon the request of client governments, for road safety projects which cover the range of possible interventions.