By Foday Moriba Conteh
At the Conference Room of the Ministry of Transport and Aviation, Youyi Building in Freetown, the Sierra Leone Road Safety Authority (SLRSA), on the 6th May 2021, launched its 5 years Strategic Road Safety Plan.
The five years plan was formally launched by the Minister of Transport and Aviation, Kabineh M. Kallon.
As part of lined activities, the Minister also set the stage for the observance of the Biennial Global Road Safety Week from the 17th to 23rd May 2021 on the theme: ‘Speed Management’.
Ibrahim Sannoh, Executive Director of SLRSA said the 6th United Nations Global Road Safety Week would kick off with the new Decade of Action for Road Safety furthering how the Global moment is to amplify ongoing campaigns to secure political commitment and policy change for low speed.
He recalled that in August 2020, the United Nations General Assembly adopted resolution 74/299, “Improving Global Road Safety”, proclaiming the Global Action 2021–2030 with the ambitious target of preventing at least 50% Road Traffic Deaths and injuries by 2030.
The Executive Director said progress made during the previous Decade of Action for Road Safety 2011–2020 has laid the foundation for accelerated action in the years ahead, noting that among achievements is the inclusion of Road Safety in the Global Health and Development Agenda.
In Sierra Leone, he maintained, after the proclamation of the global action, the then Sierra Leone Road Transport Authority was transformed to the Sierra Leone Road Safety Authority with the mandate to serve as the lead agency on road safety issues.
“The SLRSA has developed a Strategic Plan in line with the UN Global Action Plan and also in the process of reviewing its National Road Safety Strategy to reflect the new UN Decade of Action,” he said.
Sannoh said the UN General Assembly mandated the World Health Organisation (WHO) to plan and host UN Global Road Safety Weeks since 2007.
He revealed how the week-long activities would be an occasion to garner policy commitment at national and local levels to deliver a 30 km/h speed limit in urban centers and settlement areas and solicit general and local support for such low-speed measures to create a safe, healthy, green and liveable environment.
“All stakeholders: Cabinet Ministers, Parliamentarian, NGOs, UN Agencies, Civil Society Groups, Private Companies, the media, and general public are invited to join the SLRSA in observing this very important week,” he appealed.
He encouraged journalists to join the Road Safety Bandwagon by strongly advocating for best practices in Road Safety including Low Speed, Don’t Drink, and Drive messages stressing that Reducing Road Traffic Crashes requires commitment and informed decision-making by Government, Non-Governmental Organizations, International Agencies, Civil Societies, the Media, etc. Strong public awareness campaigns, he said, are essential to raise better understanding and motivate individuals and the Government to take action.
Giving a global overview of crash data, the Executive Director said 1.24 million people are killed each year as a result of Road Traffic Crashes that is more than 3,400 deaths a day.
He said in 2020, Sierra Leone recorded 861 fatalities from Road Traffic Crashes out of that figure, 541 were male while the rests were women and children.
Globally, road traffic injuries are the 9th leading cause of death ahead of Malaria and Diabetes and not far above HIV/AIDS, which means that road traffic deaths and injuries continue to eliminate a valuable segment of the workforce.
It is estimated that 20 to 50 million are injured annually in Road Traffic Crashes. Reporting on Road Safety requires more than the death of a person or group of persons from a grisly crash
The Chairman Board of Directors of SLRSA, Sheikh Mustapha Bawoh said since he was appointed Board Chairman in 2018, much has been done and the Authority has celebrated early achievements, identified challenges, and learned some lessons.
Sheikh M. Bawoh said the SLRSA was established by a statute in 1996 to regulate, among others, the conduct of the road transport industry.
Beyond its core mandate, which is to promote and enforce road safety he noted that the SLRSA is also guided by specific legal instruments like the Sierra Leone Road Traffic Act of 2007 which deals with specific traffic management matters; the Road Traffic Regulations of 2011 that enforces road traffic laws, and the Road Transport Authority (Amendment) Act of 2003 – which gave birth to the formation of the Traffic Warden Corps and in 2016, this act was amended and we now refer to them as “Road Safety Corps”.
Bawoh said any effort to reduce road injury rates relies on the ability to gauge and mitigate situations that contribute to traffic accidents.
He said that the Strategic Road Safety Plan if fully implemented has to “Save lives, Improve Road Safety and Contribute to the National economy”. This will be done through a sustained public education campaign on road safety, the acquisition and effective use of advanced Information and Communications Technology – ICT that would facilitate a drastic reduction in the current skyrocketing crashes. He however reiterated their commitment as a Board to always stand ready to support Management as it rolls out the 5-year strategic plan.
The erstwhile Executive Director of SLRSA now Minister of Internal Affairs, David Maurice Panda-Noah, said we can only succeed in combating road fatalities with concerted effort through sustained collaboration with all and sundry. He assured of his Ministry’s support to seeing that SLRSA succeeds in implementing the 5-year plan with the much-anticipated results.
Speaking on behalf of the Inspector-General of Police, the Director of Traffic Management and Road Safety at the Sierra Leone Police, AIG K.S Kamara said the SLP has been providing much-needed support to the Management of SLRSA in line with their mandate and that they will continue to cement the already existing mutual working relationship between the SLP and the SLRSA.
In his keynote address, the Minister of Transport and Aviation Hon. Kabineh M. Kallon commended the SLRSA team for what he calls “Putting the President’s Vision Into Perspective”.
The Minister appealed to all present to join the Road Safety Bandwagon and help change the many negative stories on our roads.
