No Nation Can Thrive Without Efficient Road Safety System- Shettima

The Vice President Kashim Shettima, says no nation can thrive without an efficient and disciplined road safety system.

He stated this in Abuja at the annual lecture series of the Federal Road Safety Corps FRSC held at the Presidential Villa, Abuja .

Road safety remains one of the most pressing public health challenges in Nigeria.

Despite decades of awareness campaigns and enforcement by the Federal Road Safety Corps, the country still records alarming statistics, with over 5,000 people killed and more than 30,000 others injured in road crashes annually.

This is attributable to Poor driving culture, weak compliance with traffic regulations, and inadequate infrastructure combined to make Nigerian highways among the most dangerous in Africa.

It is against this backdrop that stakeholders gathered in Abuja for the Eighth FRSC Annual Lecture Series.

Vice President Kashim Shettima, who is also Chairman of the National Road Safety Advisory Council, said no nation can thrive without an efficient and disciplined road safety system.

The Vice President, however, admitted that the country still faces troubling levels of fatalities on its roads, warning that there is no room for celebration until sustainable solutions are achieved.

He urged stakeholders across all tiers of government, the private sector, and civil society to recommit to the Nigeria Road Safety Strategy, which seeks to harmonize indigenous solutions with global best practices.

In his remarks, the Corps Marshal of the FRSC, Mallam Shehu Mohammed, explained that the lecture series, first introduced in 2009, has become a platform for creating awareness and generating ideas to tackle road crashes.

He said the revival of the series after an eight-year break aligns with the United Nations’ resolution for African countries to cut road crash fatalities and injuries by 50 percent by 2030.

The Secretary to Government of Federation Senator George Akume said the theme of the lecture “Road Safety Management and emerging transport trends: Global Partnership for Optimal Performance” was not only timely but to reawaken policy makers to act.

The Director General of Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria Dr. Mohammed Bulama, who is a stakeholder present at the event, committed to supporting the FRSC in ensuring it achieved the target of reducing road crashes by 50 percent.

Resolutions from the event are expected to inform fresh policies and strengthen partnerships aimed at achieving safer roads in Nigeria and across West Africa.

Hamza/Kayode, Edited By Grace Namiji