More than 80 countries will be represented in Cape Town as global experts gather to turn research on violence and injury prevention into practical action.
The 16th World Conference on Injury Prevention and Safety Promotion, Safety 2026, will take place at the Cape Town International Convention Centre from 1–4 September under the theme, “Ubuntu: United for a Safer Future.”
Researchers and safety experts representing 481 organisations will join policymakers, practitioners, civil society, communities and people with lived experience to examine how evidence can be translated into stronger prevention strategies.
Hosted by the Foundation for Professional Development, co-hosted by the South African Medical Research Council and co-sponsored by the World Health Organization, the conference returns to Africa for the first time in two decades.
It also takes place 30 years after the World Health Assembly adopted Resolution WHA 49.25, recognising violence as a major global public health problem.
Despite three decades of growing research and intervention, injuries and violence continue to cause more than 4.4 million deaths globally each year, with low- and middle-income countries carrying a disproportionate share of the burden.
“Injuries and violence are neither random nor inevitable,” said Professor Richard Matzopoulos, Director of the SAMRC’s Burden of Disease Research Unit and Co-Chair of the National Organising Committee.
“They are shaped by inequality, gender, alcohol-related harm, unsafe environments and failures in the systems that should prevent harm.”
Matzopoulos said the challenge is no longer simply generating evidence, but ensuring that existing knowledge influences policy, implementation and accountability.
South Africa provides a particularly important setting for that discussion.
Approximately two-thirds of South Africans do not feel safe walking alone in their neighbourhoods at night, according to Statistics South Africa, while SAMRC research indicates that the country’s homicide rate is seven times the global average. Road traffic injuries also remain among the country’s leading causes of death.
Safety 2026 is therefore approaching violence and injury as challenges extending beyond the health system.
Prevention requires cooperation across policing and justice, transport, education, social development, human settlements, urban planning and local government, together with researchers, civil society and communities.
“Safety 2026 is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to move the field from fragmented initiatives towards collective action,” said Professor Mathews, Chair of the International Scientific Committee.
“We have created more than a scientific programme. We have established a platform through which evidence, lived experience and political responsibility can come together to prevent avoidable harm.”
Discussions will cover issues including gender-based violence, violence against children, firearm violence, road and pedestrian safety, drowning, burns, mental health and trauma, urban design, climate and disaster resilience, as well as emerging digital harms.
A significant part of the conference will be determining what happens after delegates leave Cape Town.
Two outcomes are expected to provide a framework for future action.
The Ubuntu Cape Town Declaration for a Safer World will establish shared global principles for preventing violence and injury, including recognition of safety as a human right and collective responsibility.
The Safety 2026 National Consensus Plan will focus specifically on South Africa, translating those principles into practical priorities intended to improve coordination, establish priority actions and strengthen accountability.
Dr Gloria Maimela, CEO of the Foundation for Professional Development, said South Africa’s response to HIV demonstrates what can be achieved when different sectors organise around a common societal challenge.
“South Africa has seen through the HIV response what becomes possible when government, business, scientists, civil society, communities, implementing partners and people living with HIV unite around a shared societal challenge,” Maimela said.
“Safety 2026 seeks to bring that same urgency and collective purpose to violence and injury prevention.”
The conference will also take some of its discussions beyond registered delegates through a free Global Village open to members of the public.
Running from 2–4 September, the space will allow communities to engage directly with experts, share their experiences and contribute to the final Declaration and Consensus Plan.
Eight pre-conference workshops will meanwhile address practical areas including injury surveillance, research design, policy translation, violence against children, drowning, road traffic injuries and maritime harm.
Plans are also being developed for a Southern African Injury and Violence Prevention Think Tank and a South African Violence and Injury Prevention Conference in 2028, providing mechanisms to continue the work and assess whether commitments are being implemented.
Ultimately, the ambition of Safety 2026 extends beyond producing another declaration.
Its success will be measured by whether research, policy and collaboration result in fewer people experiencing preventable violence and injury in their homes, neighbourhoods, schools, workplaces, roads and public spaces.
