Download Month of Youth Against Road Accidents-CEO KGOSIDIILE

Speech by the MVA Fund Chief Executive Officer,
Mr. Cross Kgosidiile on the impact of road crashes
on the Economy at the Launch of the Month of
Youth Against Road Accidents
Gaborone Bus Terminal
Tuesday, February 18, 2014
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LIST OF GUESTS
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GOOD MORNING TO YOU ALL.
BAGAETSHO, it is a great pleasure for me to give
the economic impact of road crashes on the
economy on this occasion which marks the launch
of the Month of Youth Against Road Accidents, an
event spearheaded by Botswana National Youth
Council and fully sponsored by the MVA Fund.
With introductions and welcome remarks already
made, I am delighted by the diversity of today’s
audience. It clearly indicates the significance of this
event.
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In March 9, 2012, we witnessed the signing of a
Memorandum of Understanding between the MVA
Fund and Botswana National Youth Council thus
initiating a partnership between the said entities.
This partnership was necessitated by the fact that
the youth are highly represented in road traffic
crashes as drivers, passengers, riders, cyclists and
pedestrians.
In addition, the youth cause more
casualties in road crashes than any other age group.
To be precise, on average, 268 young people aged
between 15 and 35 years are killed each year thus
accounting for 55% of the fatalities. Further, 74
young drivers perish in road crashes each year
while passengers and pedestrians account for 114
and 74 deaths respectively
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Directors of Ceremonies, we have to bear in mind
that the youth are the drivers of Botswana’s
economy and their high prevalence in road crashes
spells doom for our future. Furthermore, the
Government of Botswana invests heavily in the
young people by providing them with scholarships
to develop them into future breadwinners. It is not
uncommon for this effort to be frustrated by early
termination of life or sustainance of disability
injuries through road crashes. This results in the
source of the entire investment in young people.
As at 2012, Botswana’s Gross Domestic Product
(GDP) stood at US$16.04 billion and it is estimated
that road crashes cost low income and middle
income economies 1-3% of the GDP. This translates
into US$ 0.1604 – 0.4812 of the low and middle
income economies. Therefore by rule of thumb
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Botswana’s cost should be in the region of BWP1.3
– 3.8 billion.
Regarding personal injuries, each year the Motor
Vehicle Accident Fund pays in the region of BWP
100 million in medical costs, loss of support, loss of
earnings, care-taker costs, and funeral costs. This
clearly demonstrates the extent of resources which
could have been used to address important
national development agenda, but are diverted as a
result of road crashes. This costs may easily double
when we consider that the Fund only serves as a
secondary insurer to road traffic victims.
A
significant part of medical expenses arising out of
road crashes are paid for directly by the state
through our public health care system.
In the same vein, the socio-econmic impact of road
crashes are also on the high side as road traffic
crashes have a devastating emotional impact on
the families and communities involved: every death
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represents the loss of a father, wife, son, daughter,
brother or sister. And there is an equally
devastating economic impact: the sudden violence
of a road death often robs a family of its only
breadwinner. Road injuries can impose a life long
cost of caring for severely disabled family members
DIRECTOR OF CEREMONIES, we hope our
partnership with BNYC will immensely improve
Botswana’s traffic safety landscape and thus
cushioning our economy.
The statement of mutual benefit and interest of the
MVA Fund / Botswana National Youth Council
submit thus:The Botswana National Youth Council’s benefits
from this MOU include collaboration with the MVA
Fund to devise strategies aimed at reducing road
crashes, identifying problem areas of mutual
concern and to educate road users on matters
pertaining to traffic safety.
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The MVA Fund’s benefits will be contained in the
“reduction in road crashes and claims lodged as a
result thereof, while also resulting in speeding up
the MVA Fund’s claims process.”
Director Of Ceremonies, the statement on mutual
benefit and interest further pronounces that:o in consultation with BNYC, identify the areas for educating
the youth and members of the public on road safety in a bid
to curb road crashes;
o identify opportunities for co-operative work or mutually
beneficial projects or activities whenever appropriate;
o where appropriate, obtain input from BNYC on educational
programmes or on the publication or distribution of any
material regarding road crash and injury prevention or
matters incidental thereto; and
o assist in improving the level of awareness on traffic safety
matters amongst the youth and to encourage safe and
courteous road use, as well as responsible driving.
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In our endeavors as a nation to bring about
improvements in the traffic safety landscape, we
must be aware that combating road crashes
requires collective effort Therefore, our primary
objective in the BNYC/MVA Fund relationship is to
drastically reduce the road crashes and their result
and effect in our society.
A successful partnership enhances the impact and
effectiveness of action through combined and more
efficient use of resources; promotes innovation and
is distinguished by strong commitment from each
partner. As MVA Fund, we believe BNYC provides a
great opportunity for us to tap from the innovative
minds of the youth, thus developing road safety
programmes that are more relevant to the current
times.
We have partnered with the youth we expect fresh
ideas that will improve our current traffic safety
situation. Their (young people) resourcefulness
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and high levels of energy will accord us the
opportunity to diversify our road safety strategies
and hence improve our ability to reach out to this
extended and diverse constituency.
Through this partnership, our young people must
develop the ability to work and participate in traffic
safety activities as this will reduce their levels of
prevalence in road crashes. The final results should
be low prevalence of the youth in road crashes and
an improved life expectancy for all. The youth will
therefore play more meaningful role as further
breadwinners and care-givers of the elderly.
Thank you very much, everybody.
God bless you. God bless Botswana.
Thank you. Thank you.
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