180 children died in road accidents in 2022

About 180 children died in road accidents across the country in 2022, while 426 sustained various degrees of injuries, a Save the Children report has revealed.

Save the Children director of programme operations Frank Mwafulira disclosed this at Mlodza Primary School in Lilongwe’s Area 23, when the organisation collaborated with the Directorate of Road Traffic and Safety Services (DRTSS) to provide road safety tips to learners during this year’s United Nations Global Road Safety Week.

He said the initiative aims to educate children about road safety and equip them with the knowledge and skills needed to stay safe on the roads.

“It is sad that last year [2022] we lost many children due to road accidents and many were injured.

“Our organisation’s mandate is to see every infant grow up and have a great future. That’s why we are here together with the road safety team to equip our learners to keep them safe from road accidents.”

In his remarks, roads transport officer Gomezgani Gondwe said a large number of school-going children are affected on the roads every year.

He said most road accidents occur because of lack of civic education and carelessness of road users.

Said Gondwe: “When Save the Children contacted us to join hands and carry out scholar patrol training, we were happy because we know the importance of these trainings to learners.

“And also there has been a tremendous reduction of road accidents as compared to 2021 due to increased visibility of traffic police officers, intensified traffic checks and road safety awareness campaigns on how to use the roads of Malawi.”

Mlodza Primary School head teacher Rose Mnsondabanda said the trainings were necessary since the school is close to the road.