By Amin Kef Sesay
The West Africa Road Safety Organization (WARSO) concluded its weekly long 10th General Assembly with the theme; “Mainstreaming Road Safety in West Africa through Regional Integration” from 4th October to 8th October 2021 at the Freetown International Conference Center.
Internal Affairs Minister, David Panda-Noah said that road safety is relevant in maintaining the human capital of any country which plays an important role in the socio-economic development with modern technology.
David Panda-Noah assured WARSO that Government is ready to work with the organization as regional reintegration is essential for the development of the sub-region for safer road.
He stated that some countries that have road safety institutions have civil societies in the road safety and reintegration should not be upward alone but downward as well to help in the dissemination of road safety to road users.
Inspector General of Police, Ambrose Michael Sovula said that the use of machines as various means of transportation especially road transport continue to threaten human lives and properties as road traffic crashes are the leading cause of death for several people in Sierra Leone as it may not be different from other West African countries.
According to IG Ambrose Michael Sovula, Sierra Leone Police records in 2019 showed that 3,691 road crashes with fatally, seriously and slightly injured victims were recorded from the overall number of 75, 725 of the various crimes recorded across the country as road safety is on the agenda of West Africa countries in order to reduce road crashes and the need for the mainstreaming of road safety in West Africa through regional integration totally in place, adding, “in Sierra Leone, the right to life and protection of the lives of people is enshrined in the 1991 Constitution and the Sierra Leone Police has the responsibility among other things.
He stated that the Sierra Leone Road Safety Authority (SLRSA) is complimenting the Police in the actualization of that mandate of managing traffic and ensuring road safety as road crashes can mostly be attributed to some factors include; human, mechanical and infrastructural factors and death and injuries caused by road crashes can be prevented that need high level of political will and leadership to put in place the right policies, laws and institutions, capacitate the enforcement agencies to enforce the laws and regulations accordingly.
Madam Diadji Sacko, WARSO President stated that road safety need multi-agency approach as management is highly needed to redirect attention, expertise, energy and resources to address road safety challenges through collaboration and Africa also to ratify African Charter on Road Safety to improve on the road safety.
WARSO President said that road should not been seen as the business of government alone but a collective responsibility with all hands on deck.
WARSO President commended SLRSA and the country as a whole for their hospitality and explained that International Road Safety Organisation is an umbrella body for road safety agencies with the membership of the organisation cutting across the world.
Madam Diadji Sacko disclosed that the idea of creating regional groups for effective co-ordination was muted in May 1985 at Lisbon Portugal with the creation of African Regional group.
According to WARSO President, the main goal of the organisation is the promotion and reinforcement of road safety activities and practices in West Africa through effective management of road safety and traffic matters with a view to drastically reducing road traffic crashes.
She stated that the organisation also encouraged the harmonization of road traffic regulations and norms within the West Africa Sub-region, creation of road safety bodies where they do not yet exist within the West Africa Sub-region and the creation of road safety organisations similar to WARSO in the other Sub-regions of Africa.
SLRSA Board Chairman, Sheikh Mustapha Bawoh who gave the keynote address explained brief of the formation of WARSO when in 2008 the pioneers of WARSO met in Abuja, Nigeria to create a sub-regional road safety organisation to prevent where possible the wanton destruction of lives and limbs in the sub-region; ameliorate as a matter of necessity the human cost of road crashes – fatalities, injuries and loss of a viable workforce to power the region’s sustainable development goals.
Sheikh Mustapha Bawoh stated that the alarming fatalities caused by road accidents within the sub-region left the World Health Organisation (WHO) and other international organisations with no option but to classify road crashes as a global health issue and poverty particularly in Africa that left with no option but to take practical steps to reduce these fatalities.
He recalled that in 2016, WHO reported that more than 6,000 deaths on the average on roads within the ECOWAS sub-region at the global level, estimates 1.3 million lives perish annually with young people between the ages of 15 – 29 years being the most affected, noting, “amidst the doom and gloom of human costs and consequences of road crashes caused by plethora of factors including not limited to sub-standardised roads and vehicles and drunk driving. Regional integration and encouragement of same is the way to go for a sub-region that has many things that unite rather than divide us with similar cultural background, economic activities, a teeming youth population language among others and mainstreaming road safety in our respective countries affords us an opportunity to save the present and preserve our future in a sub0region where the population is disproportionately high, halving fatalities and injuries caused by road crashes will save the most active current class of workers and prepare others for future leadership”.
According to SLRSA Board Chairman, the authority continued to support road safety education and awareness programs in schools and public lorry parks, enforcement of laws and regulations aimed at preventing road crashes and also the SLRSA is in the process of constructing vehicles fitness centres nationwide to scale-up the number of road worthy vehicles plying on the road, reduce the number of road crashes and save precious lives of road users.
He revealed that the authority has also developed a road user policy aimed at positively impacting behavourial change among stakeholders in the road sector and ensuing compliance with road signs and providing a strategic guideline for management.
James Bio, SLRSA Deputy Executive Director stated that SLRSA will continued activism in optimising road safety awareness in the country as the assembly will strengthening institutional legislative frameworks of road safety in the sub-region in enhancing efforts of safer roads and safer road users, exchanging ideas on post-crash response and emergency service management.
Presentation of award to WARSO Vice President Ing. Mrs. May Obiri-Yeboah and cultural and musical performance climaxed the ceremony as the ceremony was chaired by Dr. Nathaniel King.
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