资源环境科技发展态势分析平台

24 July 2020 – The COVID-19 crisis has led to the number of deaths in road accidents in Ethiopia being cut by over half according to the country’s Transport Minister. Speaking during a webinar on An Opportunity to Build Back Better: the potentially transformative impact of Covid-19 on road safety in low- and middle-income countries, the Minister Dagmawit Moges said the 56 per cent reduction was due to lower traffic volumes and increased law enforcement.

The webinar, organized by the United Nations Road Safety Fund also featured the UN Secretary-General’s Special Envoy for Road Safety, Jean Todt, the Executive Secretary of the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe, Olga Algayerova, and the Deputy Director-General for Mobility and Transport,  European Commission, Mathew Baldwin.

The UN-Habitat Executive Director, Maimunah Mohd Sharif, emphasized the need to create an opportunity out of the current crisis as physical distancing has encouraged cities to focus on providing better infrastructure for walking and cycling. “Only by rethinking cities and mobility can we have a transformative impact,” she said.

Most fatalities and injuries from traffic accidents are in low-and middle-income countries where increasing motorization and rapid road infrastructure development have outpaced the provision of safe intersections, modern public transport systems, footpaths and bicycle lanes.