Our monthly columnist Mr. Brian Bilal Mwebaze joins in the new year reflecting on his experiences in road safety in Africa. Brian recently visited Nairobi, Kenya to partake in the 1st Africa Road Safety Data Workshop. He shares some of his learning from the workshop here.
A few weeks ago, while at the meeting with stakeholders planning for National Road Safety Week Celebrations, I was asked by a media friend how I came to join Youth for Road Safety consequently as their Anglophone Africa Regional Coordinator. My response, “I practiced what I preached and secondly, I asked”. And asked I did to the organizers of the 1st Africa Road Safety Data Workshop consequently hurling me into mix of things.
The regional workshop on road safety was hosted by the Kenya National Transport and Safety Authority and co- organised by the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe, United Nations Economic Commission for Africa, the Africa Transport Policy Program (SSATP), the World Bank and the International Road Traffic Accident Database organisation (IRTAD) of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development OECD, at The Tribe Hotel-Nairobi from 13th to 15th December 2016.
Deleages to the Nairobi workshop.
The workshop covered United Nations Road Safety legal Instruments, fundamentals of road safety data management and minimum data requirements for all African countries to monitor progress towards the Decade of Action for Road Safety and Sustainable Development Goals.
Speaking at the opening of the workshop, the UN Special Envoy on Road Safety Jean Todt challenged all participants to “do something” after the workshop. To me he highlighted the focus of road safety at global level to be translated into action at local levels when he said,
“The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals have set a strong impetus for us to increase and enhance our efforts to improve the road safety situation, especially at the national and regional levels. With my appointment, The United Nations Secretary-General saw a great need for increased global commitment to road safety”.
I also was happy to meet with @bettyobwocha :-an Online Subeditor @DAILY NATION-Kenya. As Duncan Kibogong from National Transport & Safety Authority-Kenya put it “20-44 age group contributes about 64% of all road traffic deaths in Kenya yet they’re most productive”. With Betty, we had meaningful preliminary chat on improving road safety reporting in Kenya and Anglophone Africa. In specificity, we discussed about forming a Road Safety Journalist Corner for which young people, bloggers & activists can airout their concerns on Road Safety Risks including Youth & Adolescent Road Safety Data issues. We do anxiously all look forward to the “Action” part. Photocredits Fatiha Taban
YOURS may have set the first structure of Country Level Road Safety Youth Champions but we need more space for and young people to make actions to reduce their number 1 killer.