That every year, 1.35 million lives are lost and 50 million more suffer life-threatening injuries globally because of road accidents is frightening. The figures result from the horrid nature of roads. In Nigeria, most roads, especially federal ones, are so dilapidated so much so that they have been described as deathtraps. CHINAKA OKORO writes that the Federal Government should take advantage of November 19 every year set aside by the United Nations to remember those who died or were injured from road crashes to fix its bad roads to reduce carnage on them.
In the sprawling town of Awka, hedged in between the sumptuous olive-green peaks, there lived a young orphan named Ikeokwu whose history is remarkably delightful. Raised by his maternal uncle, Nweze, Ikeokwu’s story was that of resilience and determination to survive, despite all odds. With courageous willpower, dazzling eyes full of vision and a mind overflowing with desire for knowledge, he faced the world with resolute determination, even though the odds seemed stacked against him.
Being the only surviving individual in the family of Mr and Mrs Odim Ibeku-Mma who perished in a road accident, Ikeokwu became an advocate of road safety.
The day of the crash began like any other day for the entire family. They scheduled to travel to their home town in Awka in Anambra State. The journey from their home in Ojodu-Berger, Lagos was seamless. However, things went awry along Ore-Benin Road as the Sienna car they were travelling in hit a crater and somersaulted. The car fell into a ditch. Mr and Mrs Ibeku-Mma and two of their children- Ifeoma, 15 and Ikenna, 13- died instantly. Ikeokwu, 9 survived, though not without months of treatment in an orthopaedic hospital.
Armed with the nasty experience, Ikeokwu established Odim Ibeku-Mma Foundation (MOIF) through which victims of road crashes are taken care of.
His is a society that cares less about the provision of quality road infrastructure that can promote economic development. His society disregards the provision of good roads that would engender improvement of citizens’ quality of life and facilitate economic activity. Ikeokwu’s advocacies for critical infrastructure, especially roads, were taxing, but his spirit remained stanch.
Ikeokwu’s story, like many other children whose parents or significant others were victims of road crashes, was a demonstration of resoluteness in the face of hard times, the world over.
Ikeokwu and others like him have been pushing for an accident-free world.
The United Nations identified with their aspirations and endorsed the World Day of Remembrance of Road Traffic Victims on October 26, 2005, as a global day to be observed on every third Sunday in November each year.
This year, the day places emphasis on justice as its theme. This translates to justice and fairness for victims of road traffic crashes.
This theme draws inspiration from the advocacy of FEVR– 4 ever, an international federation of different organisations that offers help and assistance to victims of road traffic crashes by providing free emotional, physical and practical assistance.
The Day is meant to remember those who died or were injured from road crashes and the plight of their loved ones who must cope with the consequences of their deaths or injuries. It also reveals a dark reality that “every year 1.35 million lives are lost and 50 million more suffer life-threatening injuries because of road accidents.”
In his message for this year’s event, the United Nations Secretary-General, António Guterres expressed his worry that these fatal accidents are preventable tragedies, even as he urged member states to do more to avoid the nasty trend.
He stated that “the Global Plan for the Decade of Action for Road Safety–now in its third year–aims to reduce by half road deaths by building capacities, accelerating the implementation of UN road safety conventions, raising awareness and mobilising resources for greater traffic safety.”
Recounting some efforts the world body has made to improve road safety globally was the launch of the Global Campaign on Road Safety which, he added, will reach 1,000 cities across 80 countries this year. Another effort, according to Guterres is the founding of the UN Road Safety Fund which finances action in low-and middle-income countries where about 90 per cent of traffic casualties occur.
Aside from these efforts, Guterres said: “Urgent action remains imperative. I call on all donors to scale up much-needed financial and technical contributions. On this World Day, let us join forces to make roads safer for everyone, everywhere.”
Roads in Nigeria
According to the Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission (ICRC), Nigeria has about 195,000 km road network out of which about 32,000 km are federal roads while 31,000km are state roads. Out of this figure, only about 60,000km is paved and most of them were constructed in the 80’s and early 90’s. This is according to its Director-General, Michael Ohiani.
In 2023, out of 15,507,000 registered vehicles in West Africa, Nigeria accounts for 11,869,800 or 75 per cent of cars in the sub-region. Findings show that Nigerian roads are characterised by potholes, bumps and poor bridges that cause road accidents.
Most roads in Nigeria, especially federal ones, are so dilapidated so much so that they have been regarded as deathtraps.
Driving through most of the roads that crisscross the Southeast zone has become very distressing. The Enugu-Onitsha, Onitsha Owerri, Aba-Owerri, Owerri-Umuahia, Enugu-Abakaliki, and Oba-Nnewi-Okigwe roads, among many others is in awful situation.
For instance, the journey from Enugu to Onitsha which, in good time, used to take less than one hour now takes about six hours. The same applies to Enugu-Aba and Onitsha-Owerri roads.
Also, roads in the Southwest are in a horrible state. Residents of some communities along the Obafemi Owode Local Government Area of Ogun State axis are currently groaning over the deplorable state of their roads. Roads in the North do not fare better.
Concerned about this state of affairs, the Minister of Works, Mr David Umahi lashed out at some foreign and local road contractors due to their penchant for delivering badly-built roads. He said they are taking Nigerians for granted by building roads that are not durable.
He lamented the poor quality of roads built in the country, saying that no road, whether already existing or currently being built, will last the next seven years.
Umahi regretted that there was also little or no monitoring of projects by either directors or controllers, thereby resulting in shoddy jobs carried out nationwide. He maintained that contractors must redesign their projects to concrete projects rather than asphalt, stressing that there was no going back on the decision. The minister noted that Nigerian roads have now gone from having ‘potholes’ to having ‘boreholes.’
The Managing Director of Financial Derivatives Company, Bismarck Rewane attributed the increasing cost of food items to the deteriorating condition of the country’s roads.
Rewane portrayed a grim view of the dilapidated state of many Nigerian roads. He emphasised that the government needs to prioritise the restoration of the bad roads.
Also, Martha Sambe, a development economist says bad roads lead to loss of lives and impede Nigeria’s economic development.
Writing on Rethinking Roads in Nigeria published in Stears https://www.stears.co, she said: “Nigeria’s road network stretches to 193,200km out of which barely 28,980km (15 per cent) is paved. This is a far cry to what obtains in Malaysia which has 80 per cent and Ethiopia with a 13 per cent paved road network. Beyond the health hazards, the poor quality of Nigerian roads acts as a stumbling block to development.”
Pundits say that as a result of poor maintenance and low-quality materials used for repairs, the condition of roads is weak and deteriorating. Travelling on the roads has become taxing and sometimes almost impossible in many areas during the rainy season due to potholes, and eroded and uneven surfaces.
It is noteworthy that due to the poverty level in the country which does not allow some citizens to travel by air or sea, Nigerian roads are overworked and under-maintained.
It can be argued that Nigeria’s most pressing infrastructural need is a healthy transportation network, which includes functional rail, road, water and air systems. Disputably, of all these, roads are the most significant.
In economic terms, the poor state of road transportation has resulted in the loss of billions of naira as well as thousands of avoidable deaths due to accidents.
Impacts of bad roads on the economy
Stakeholders have decried the rise in the number of crashes on roads, describing the situation as distressing and frightening. They argue that the failure of Nigerian roads affects road users and vehicles. Some of the effects identified are increased accident rate, increase in faulty vehicles, high vehicle maintenance cost and increase in travel time either due to traffic congestion or due to bad roads.
One of the major impacts of poor road transport networks on the marketing of agricultural produce, experts say, is the high incidence of post-harvest losses. The increased cost of transportation compels farmers to sell their produce at farm gates at lower prices. This results in price increases in the cities when the produce manages to reach the cities.
Road accidents can result in a wide range of physical injuries, from minor cuts and bruises to severe injuries such as bone fractures, spinal cord injuries, traumatic brain injuries and amputations. These can impact a person’s health and well-being; leading to long-term disabilities and reduced mobility.
According to a report from the FRSC, a total of 32,617 people lost their lives to road traffic crashes in Nigeria from 2016 to 2021, from 65,053 accidents across the country.
Road traffic crashes place an enormous financial burden, not only on the families of victims but also on society and the governments. Experts reveal that up to five per cent of Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is lost to road crashes, an equivalent of N500 billion lost to road crashes annually.
Deaths, injuries from road crashes
Injuries and deaths resulting from road traffic accidents are escalating. According to authorities, the phenomena are Nigeria’s third-leading cause of overall deaths, the leading cause of trauma-related deaths and the most common cause of disability.
The situation is especially problematic because of poor traffic infrastructure, poor road design, poor enforcement of traffic rules and regulations, a rapidly growing population and a subsequent number of people driving cars.
In a recent report, the FRSC revealed that 4,387 died in road accidents in the first half of 2023 across the 36 states and the federal capital territory (FCT). This indicates a 26 per cent increase from the 2022 figure of 6,456 deaths. It also noted that “a total of 5,700 crashes occurred within the first half of 2023. The crashes claimed 2,850 lives as against 6,627 crashes that occurred in 2022 within the same period that left 3,375 people dead.”
The Corps spokesperson, Bisi Kazeem who stated this during a chat with reporters recently, added that the figure translates to an average of 731 fatalities a month or about 24 lives lost daily.
Experts maintain that accidents have physical, social, emotional and economic implications. Fatalities, physical disability and morbidity from road accidents predominantly affect the young and the economically-productive age groups. Survivors often endure a diminished quality of life from deformities and disabilities, post-traumatic stress and loss of personal income, in a country not well known for exceptional rehabilitation services.
Apart from the burden that these road mishaps place on victims’ families, they also take a huge toll on the country’s economy.
Efforts at curbing road accidents, fatalities
Despite the several revisions of transport laws, the rate of road traffic crashes continues to increase. This phenomenon prompted the Federal Government to establish the Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC) in February 1988 with the mandate “to prevent or minimise accidents on the highway; clear obstructions on any part of the highways; and educate drivers, motorists and other members of the public on the proper use of the highways.”
The FRSC, in collaboration with the Beer Sectoral Group (BSG), has launched several campaigns on road traffic accidents. One such campaign is the “Don’t Drink and Drive” intervention launched in 2008. This intervention was initiated to discourage drunk driving and to improve safety on Nigerian roads.
The government also established the Federal Roads Maintenance Agency (FERMA) in 2002 with responsibilities to “efficiently and effectively monitor and administer road maintenance with the objective of keeping all federal roads in good and safe conditions.”
Through its various agencies, the government sensitises the public to the need to adhere to traffic safety regulations. This is an important factor in reducing the frequency of road traffic crashes. The enforcement of road safety laws such as the use of seat belts has been associated with a significant reduction in the fatality and severity of injury after a road crash.
Global population vis-à-vis death rates
As of mid-year of 2023, the UN estimated that the world population hit 8,045,311,447). This, according to it, is a 0.88 per cent increase (70,206,291 people) from 2022, when the global population was 7,975,105,156, or 0.83 per cent increase (65,810,005 people) from 2021, when the world population was 7,909,295,151.
Demographers expect the global population to hit 9 billion by 2037 and 10 billion by 2056.
However, as the world population grows, global death rates have also continued to increase due to several factors.
According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), one of the major causes of death the world over is road accidents. It further said there are about 1.474 billion vehicles on earth in 2023.
WHO noted that “globally, traffic accidents cause major health problems and are of concern to health institutions and stakeholders; nearly 1.35 million people die or are disabled in traffic accidents every year. Out of this figure, about 3,700 people die every day in fatal accidents alone.”
Worried about the development, WHO predicts that if no progress is made in tackling the causes of road deaths, the global annual death toll will reach 1.9 million by the end of 2023.
Global statistics show that though Africa contributes two per cent of the world’s cars, it accounts for 16 per cent of the world’s road deaths.
However, the Global Plan for the Decade of Action for Road Safety 2021 to 2030 reflects an ambitious target to reduce road traffic deaths and injuries by 50 per cent by 2030. The global plan stresses that “deaths and injuries resulting from road crashes can be prevented by addressing the whole of the transport system, taking action to ensure safe roads, vehicles and behaviours as well as to improve emergency care.” Actualising this target remains a conjecture as the target is seven years away.
Expectations from government
Despite that the statistics on road crashes in Nigeria is vexatious; it has not received the attention it deserve. There is a need to regard road accidents as an issue of urgent national importance.
Policymakers at the various levels of government need to recognise this enormous problem as a public health crisis design appropriate policy responses and back it up with thorough implementation.
The citizens expect the government to carry out a system needs analysis before carrying out any road repair or construction. The government should embark on aggressive sensitisation to educate drivers and other road users about traffic rules. It shall also carry out aggressive and periodic medical checkups, especially vision and hearing for drivers. Training on first aid should be compulsory along with health education and traffic education for the general public to prevent accidents.
