Prince Abdulaziz ambassador for road safety

Professional racing driver Prince Abdulaziz bin Turki Al-Faisal has been appointed ambassador for road safety in Shell’s 2013 road safety program.
The agreement for the designated appointment was signed between Shell CEO Patrick van Daele and Jo Otayek on behalf of the prince, in the presence of Prince Abdulaziz at the Shell headquarters in Riyadh on Tuesday.
Prince Abdulaziz bin Turki Al-Faisal was last year’s winner of the ME Porsche cup. He also won the championship title in the first GT3 European championship round organized in the Algarve international circuit in Portugal in May 2011.
A political science graduate from the King Saud University, the prince started his motor sport career in 2005.
Announcing the appointment yesterday in Riyadh, van Daele said: “We are very happy to tackle the road safety challenges in partnership with Prince Abdulaziz bin Turki Al-Faisal. His great achievements as a professional racing driver make him the ideal choice to deliver an effective message to the community.”
He pointed out that Shell believes the association with a respected Saudi national with vast motoring experience will give the program an additional weight and credibility.
He indicated that his company takes road safety very seriously, not only inside the company, but also by working hand in hand with the communities where it operates.
“Our road safety programs around the world show that we can save lives, and that targeting youth is a good way of creating more awareness. With this program, we hope to contribute to addressing society’s most pressing challenges,” he said.
The program will run through 2013 and will target educational institutes and public places, focusing on youth.
Shell has many successful road safety programs around the world and now intends to bring its experience to the Kingdom to reduce road accidents.
According to the latest statistics of the General Department of Traffic, 7,153 people died on Saudi Arabia’s roads last year. Seventy-five percent of them were vulnerable road users such as children.
“Road safety is a major challenge in the Kingdom. Our mission is to make roads safe and increase education and awareness about road safety among youth and drivers alike. Shell is a global leader in developing road safety.
“We are very happy to work together with Shell in developing this approach in Saudi Arabia,” Prince Abdulaziz noted.