AMEND-Ghana, with support from Puma Energy Foundation, has launched a road safety programme to protect school children in an effort to reduce road accidents.
The project, which has been endorsed by the National Road Safety Commission and the Ghana Education Service, is to ensure that children are protected as they walk to and from school.
Recent reports from the World Health Organization estimates that over 6,700 people are killed on Ghana’s roads each year.
Speaking at the launch, Executive Director of AMEND, Jeffrey Witte, said because child pedestrians are among the highest-risk groups in Ghana for road traffic injury, it is important for special attention to be given to ensure fewer lives are lost. According to him, some of these projects, although expensive, can be adopted by government to ensure that every child of school-going age is protected.
“We choose the Richard Akwei Memorial School in the Agbogbloshi section of Accra to launch this project because of the number of accidents that usually occur in front of the school. Last year, five pupils were injured. We have interacted with the students, taught them how to cross the road and where to walk. ”
On her part, the Headmistress of Richard Akwei Memorial School said her institution was grateful to AMEND and Puma Energy.
She said before the construction of speed ramps on the road in front of her school, the situation was worrying whilst calling for more education among Ghanaians to help reduce the road accidents.
“When our children are given more education it can reduce the rate at which they are knocked down by cars, but our drivers still need to be educated. The name is zebra-crossing, but when a child stands there, the drivers do not readily stop to allow them to pass. But because of the ramps, now they will be forced to slow down. If an NGO can do this, then government can do more. We need a lot of these interventions across the country especially at schools directly by a road.”
Representing Vincent Faber, Executive Director of Puma Energy Foundation, Zohra McDoolley Aimone, Regional Head of Corporate Affairs for Africa, said, “The Puma Energy Foundation is strongly committed to improving the safety of Africa’s children on the roads.”
“We believe that the twin-pronged approach of implementing practical solutions on the ground as well as promoting sustainable safety solutions to policy makers, will contribute to ensure safe and healthy journeys to school and a bright future for Ghana’s children.”
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By: Felicia Osei/citifmonline.com/Ghana