A total of 17 people were killed and several others injured in road accidents in Rwanda in the last six days, the country’s Traffic and Road Safety Department of the Police said Sunday.
The deputy head of Traffic and Road Safety Department, Assistant Commissioner of Police Teddy Ruyenzi, said that most of accidents were caused by over speeding and violation of traffic rules,
Since the launch of ‘Gerayo Amahoro’ accidents had reduced by 24% by December 2019, according to police.
Every year, hundreds die of accidents in Rwanda, and thousands are admitted in the hospitals and many of them sustain permanent injuries due to road accidents. Last year, the number of road accidents decreased to 4,661 cases from 5,661 that were recorded in 2018, according to figures from traffic police.
At least 223 people lost their lives to road accidents in 2019 compared to 465 in 2018, according to Rwanda police.
“Gerayo Amahoro” (loosely translated to ‘arrive safely’) was meant to develop and implement sustainable road safety strategies and programs, and increase road safety awareness towards mindset change to prevent road carnage.
CU/abj/APA