Kampala – Over 4,000 boda boda riders have been trained in road safety and first aid under the Safe Steps campaign.
The six-month long campaign by prudential in partnership with Uganda Red Cross Society (URCS) targeted riders within Kampala Metropolitan Area (KMA) covering the five Divisions of Central, Makindye, Rubaga, Nakawa, Kawempe along with Wakiso, Entebbe and Mukono.
Commenced on 1st September 2022, the campaign was primarily aimed at promoting road safety, first behavioral change and awareness among boda boda riders within KMA alongside dissemination of 60-second public service announcement videos and educational posters featuring Safe Steps Road Safety Africa Ambassador Didier Drogba who advises on key road safety topics such as drunk driving, distracted driving, use of seat belts, respecting speed limits, motorcycles and pedestrians.
Boda bodas riders are one of the most at-risk road users in Uganda. For instance, a total of 1,404 motocyclists and 552 passengers were killed in road crashes last year alone according to the recently released Annual Police Report 2022.
Globally, 1.35 million people are killed on the roads every year, including 500 children every day. Africa has the highest road fatality rate in the world and 44 percent of road traffic deaths are pedestrians and cyclists. Although Africa has only 2 percent of the world’s cars, the continent accounts for 20 percent of road deaths worldwide.
Officiating at the grand finale event of the Safe Steps campaign held in Kampala on Friday, the Minister of Works and Transport Gen. Katumba Wamala commended prudential and Uganda Redcross Society for the initiative which he said will go a long way in reducing road crashes involving boda boda riders in the country.
He noted the campaign is in line with the National Road Safety Action Plan 2021/22 – 2025/26 which is a guiding tool geared at contributing to the prevention and reduction of road crashes by 25%.
The minister called for concerted efforts in the fight against road crashes in the country. “Here we have seen what partnerships can bring into play because we have seen Prudential, Redcross, police and the ministry of works coming on board. None of us has enough resources but if we pull our resources together, we can make an impact because the issue of road crashes concerns each one of us,” said Gen Katumba
Speaking at the event, Tetteh Ayitevie the Chief Executive Officer Prudential Uganda said that the Safe Steps campaign aimed to raise awareness and provide easy-to-understand educational information on road safety which extended to Uganda having been successful in Ivory Coast and Kenya.
“The campaign in Uganda enhanced road safety skills acquisition among boda – boda riders within the Kampala Metropolitan Area through skills-based road safety and first aid trainings, increasing the level of usage of basic protective gear and heightening road safety awareness among the boda-boda cyclists, passengers and the general public,” he said
Robert Kwesiga, the Secretary General URCS appreciated Prudential Uganda for successfully completing Phase I of the Safe Steps campaign in Uganda through which bodaboda riders who are embedded in Uganda’s ecosystem have been sensitized on road safety and first aid.
He said “At URCS, we are committed to road safety and recognize the rapid escalation of Uganda’s road safety crisis. Since 2019, URCS has been implementing a response to Public Health Emergencies program funded by the Government of Uganda through Ministry of Health aimed at improving emergency medical services along major highways by providing timely response to casualties of Road Traffic Accidents (RTA) by operating a fleet of 21 Ambulances. Prudential Uganda’s partnership with URCS through the Safe Steps campaign is accelerating the URCS’ mandate to save lives.”