Road accidents claim 436 lives annually

Namibia has recorded an alarming average of 436 road accident dreaths annually over the past three years.

The Motor Vehicle Accident (MVA) Fund says 2 925 road crashes were recorded from 1 January to December this year. These incidents have resulted in 5 297 injuries and 385 deaths.

MVA Fund spokesperson John Haufiku says the average number of deaths over the past three years were 436 per year, with the Khomas region recording the highest number of crashes.

“The Khomas region recorded the highest number of crashes with 36% (1 062) of the total crashes recorded year to date, followed by Erongo at 12% (359), then Oshana at 10% (287), the Otjozondjupa region at 8% (237), then by Oshikoto at 6% (189) and the Kavango East region at 5% (150),” he says.

The same regions also recorded the highest number of injuries with Khomas recording the highest number of injuries at 31% (1 616) of the total injuries.

“The majority of drivers involved in crashes year-to-date fall within the age range of 30 to 34 years, followed by those aged 35 to 39 years.

This remains a matter of concern as the country continues to lose young people in their prime,” Haufiku says.

Pedestrian-related accidents recorded the highest number, followed by road crashes, with 33% and 29%, respectively. According to the MVA Fund’s research, human behaviour accounts for 70% of road crashes.

“Driving under the influence of intoxicating substances, using a cellphone while driving or crossing the road, and failing to wear a seatbelt . . . Based on this, it is clear that when we as road users change our behaviour, we can reduce crashes by 70%,” Haufiku says. He says the MVA Fund has committed to undertake the following activities during the 2024/25 festive season road safety campaign period:

The fund will ensure increased emergency response capacity on the B1 and B2 highways, with paramedics stationed at Swakopmund, farm Wilhelmstal, farm Sukses, Omuthiya, Otjiwarongo and the MVA Fund Service Centre at Otavi along the B1 and B2 route.

Haufiku says the Namibian Defence Force has also confirmed their partnership in the endeavour by providing two ambulances – one at farm Wilhelmstal and another at farm Sukses.

The fund has started to roll out its ‘Green Dot’ programme, which addresses public transport passenger safety in the six high-crash regions.

Haufiku says the fund will also conduct road user education to raise awareness of the risks related to speeding, fatigue, driving under the influence, and driving unroadworthy vehicles.

“Bringing role-players together and creating an opportunity to draw attention to the scale of emotional and economic devastation caused by road crashes forces us to address this problem,” he says.

The fund urges road users and the public at large to alert it to road accidents using its accident response number: 9682.