Scouts around the world are joining hands together this week to strengthen global forces against the number one cause of death for young people, road accidents. Annually, over 1.2 million people die on roads in a cause that can easily be tackled with joined up action. The Second UN Global Road Safety Week (every five years) is taking place from 6 to 12 May 2013. On 6 and 7 May, 30 Rover Scouts and leaders from 14 countries came together for a series of events at the United Nations premises in Geneva on the invitation of Scouting Ireland, Scouts of Greece and the Greek-Hellenic Road Safety Institute ‘Panos Mylonas’. The events were supported and hosted by the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE). 2011 to 2020 is also the ‘Decade of Action for Road Safety’ promoted by the United Nations.

The World Organization of the Scout Movement (WOSM) welcomes South Sudan as its latest member. The membership became official on 1 May 2013. The National Scout Organization, South Sudan Scout Association will be ceremonially welcomed at the 40th World Scout Conference in Slovenia (2014). World Scouting is one of the first global youth organisations to accept the full memebrship of South Sudan

Bangladesh Scouts mobilized Rovers and Leaders in finding survivors after an eight-storey building collapsed in Savar, Bangladesh on 24th April 2013 which claimed over 300 lives and severely injured hundreds of others. Death toll is expected to rise for many are still missing.

In agreement with the Asia-Pacific Regional Scout Committee, Scott Teare, Secretary General of the World Organization of the Scout Movement, has appointed Mr. J. Rizal Pangilinan, 50 years old, from Morong, Rizal, Philippines, as the new Regional Director for the World Scout Bureau Asia-Pacific Regional Office.

Even as the final results of the anxiously awaited Kenyan elections are yet to confirm a clear winner, Scouts in the country have been extensively advocating for peaceful behaviour amongst citizens. Not so long ago, Scouts from Ghana in western part of Africa implemented a nationwide project also to ensure peaceful elections. With these latest projects and several hundred others registered on the online platform scoutmessengers.org, the flagship initiative of World Scouting – Messengers of Peace (MoP) - has exceeded 10 million hours of community service from Scouts around the world. This morning, the MoP platform says ‘Scouts across the world have provided 10,240,526 service hours on creating a better world!’

The 1st World Scout Education Congress will take place from 22-24 November at the B P International House in Hong Kong. This milestone event will strengthen education in Scouting as the core business of our worldwide Movement. This event is for volunteers and professionals working to support the Educational Methods (Youth Programme and Adult Resources) in Scouting at various levels, particularly the World, Regional and National Levels.

On 22 February every year, millions of Scouts around the world gather at local, national and international levels to celebrate Founder’s Day. It is the birthday of Lord Baden-Powell (1857-1941), the pioneer of Scouting. Founder’s Day is a crucial event in the Scouting calendar when members renew their Scout Promise reaffirming their commitment to the core values of the Movement. Here is a joint message from Simon Rhee, Chairperson of the World Scout Committee and Scott Teare, Secretary General of World Scouting on the occasion of Founder’s Day 2013.

The inaugural weekend of the World Centennial of Catholic Scouts and Guides took place in Mouscron (Belgium) on 12 and 13 January. Situated close to Belgium’s border with France (Lille), Mouscron is the place where 100 years ago the first troop of Catholic Scouts started their activities under the leadership of Jean Corbisier and Father Jacques Sevin. Father Sevin was a French priest that the Pope declared ‘Venerable’ in 2012. The event was jointly organised by the International Conference of Catholics in Scouting (ICCS), alongside the ICCG – Guiding counterpart organisation with the support of the Guide and Scout Associations in Belgium. ICCS currently holds a Consultative Status with the World Scout Committee.

Nhattan Nguyen from Canada, a young representative of World Scouting and a Messengers of Peace young ambassador, has been elected with the backing of WOSM as a Coordinator of Children and Youth for the United Nations Environment Programme’s Major Groups Facilitation Committee (UNEP-MGFC). Nhattan will serve a two-year term starting January 2013 alongside Kehkashan Basu from the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Nhattan’s role within the MGFC will be to coordinate the responses and inputs of Children and Youth in UNEP’s work, discussions and outcome documents. Nhattan had previously represented WOSM externally as a youth representative at the landmark UN event, Rio+20 Conference on Sustainable Development that took place in Brazil (June 2012).