KWENU! Our culture, our future

Road safety will take a frontal position, next month, as the world marks this year's World Health Day (WHD). It is an annual event marking the establishment of the World Health Organization (WHO). Celebrated on 7 April, the global occasion is traditionally used as an advocacy tool to generate public debate, and action on important health issues.

With the theme "Road Safety Is No Accident," the event aims at putting road safety on the world's agenda.  Along with the top agency, countries, governments and experts in the field are expected to lead the way in this campaign. As in previous editions, this event is aimed to promote good health and in this case the overriding objective is to reduce deaths and injuries on roads. The refrain may well be "Less Deaths on Roads."

In reflecting on this year's celebration, the disasters that have become a recurring feature of Nigerian roads quickly come to mind. It may not be an exaggeration to point out that it remains doubtful how this noble pursuit will affect the average driver on the Nigerian road.

This campaign will be an enormous task, considering the prevailing culture of over-speeding, inadequate road monitoring and enforcement of traffic laws on our high ways. More so, this is a country where roads, particularly in the Southeast, have become death traps. The possibility of translating the WHO driven-road ideals into reality in a country like Nigeria, where funds meant for projects such as road construction and rehabilitation are siphoned by government officials, looks very dim.

Take the typical Lagos commercial bus (molue) drivers for instance. What will this mean to this frenzied lot? Other nagging questions abound:

What about over-crowding of commercial buses?

What about hanging by bus conductors?

What about over-speeding?

Will this stop the thunderous horn blaring?

Will this stop the motorcyclists' (okada) reign of terror?

Will this reduce the stressful traffic jams in Lagos?

Will the irreparable Southeast roads ever be rehabilitated?

What about the rising costs of automobile spare parts?

The issues are myriad requiring government attention as being preached by the world's apex health body.

 The WHO, revealed in a recent newsletter that "road traffic injuries killed an estimated 1.2 million persons in 1998"  noting also that over 70 percent  - nearly 850,000 persons - killed in road traffic injuries in 1998 were under 45 years of age.

But the real tragedy is that "deaths from injuries are projected to rise from 5.1 million in 1990 to 8.4 million in 2020 "with increase in road traffic injuries as a major cause for this rise. Currently deaths from road traffic injuries account for 2.2 percent of the global mortality affecting all age groups."  However "some 50 per cent of road traffic fatalities worldwide involve young adults aged 15-44 years corresponding to the most economically productive segment of the population."

 "Road crashes, ranking ninth among the leading causes of disease burden worldwide, account for 2.8 percent of all global deaths and disability. Although the number of motor vehicles per population is much higher in developed countries, the toll due to road traffic injuries is highest in developing countries representing more than one million deaths in 1998. The economic costs of traffic injuries are enormous."

The world body regretted that, "the benefits from revolutionizing the transportation system, particularly automobiles, have left negative impacts on human beings," and the entire environment.

Apart from the high death and injury toll arising from road mishaps, the organization believes that motorized transport has contributed to respiratory and pulmonary diseases through waste emission, discouraged physical exercise, and in some places, disturbed concentration and sleep due to noise pollution.     

The death toll it stressed "is highest and still growing in low and middle-income countries, where pedestrians, motorcyclists, where pedestrians, motorcyclists, cyclists and passengers are especially vulnerable."

"Addressing issues such as speeding and driving under the influence of alcohol; promoting the use of helmets, seat belts and other restraints; ensuring that people walking and cycling are more easily visible: improving the design of roads and vehicles; enforcing road safety regulations; and improving emergency response services has demonstrated that the needless deaths and disabilities caused by road traffic collisions can be prevented."

"Although road traffic injuries have been among the top global causes of death for many years, it was only recently that the issue became a significant topic of discussion in the United Nations (UN) General Assembly."

In response to the growing concern about road traffic injuries, the WHO Director-General, Dr LEE Jong-Wook, has, for the first time in the history of the organization, devoted a WHD specifically to road safety. "Each year road traffic injuries take the lives of 1.2 million men, women and children around the world, and seriously injure millions more.  At the Paris launch on 7 April 2004, WHO and the World Bank are expected to launch the World report on road traffic injury prevention."

While the global launch will take place in Paris, France, many other regional and national events are expected to take place concurrently around the world. Hundreds of groups will host events related to road safety. Here are highlights:

        . Launching of a new legislation;

        . Conferences and seminars;

        . National charity sports event for road safety;

        . Radio or television talk shows;

        . Street demonstrations and fairs;

        . Walks, marathons or similar events;

        . Photographic or other types of art exhibitions.

Dr LEE Jong-Wook, speaking last year in a meeting in Geneva expressed optimism that "combining diverse expertise in road safety and taking action will help to reverse the unnecessary death toll on the world's roads."

Participants at the occasion underscored the need �to identify mechanisms for maintaining the momentum generated by WHD2004,� after April 7.

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