Okaz/Saudi Gazette

JEDDAH — Saudi Arabia recorded a decrease of 35 percent in the rate of road accident deaths during the past five years. The number of road accident deaths decreased from 9311 in 2016 to 6,651 in 2021, according to a statement of the World Health Organization (WHO).

The Saudi achievement contributes primarily to achieving the global goal of reducing deaths resulting from road accidents by 50 percent by the end of the UN Second Decade of Action for Road Safety in 2030. The Second Decade of Action for Road Safety 2021-2030 was proclaimed in an earlier UN resolution to improve Global Road Safety with a target to reduce road deaths and serious injuries by 50 percent by the end of 2030.

This comes within the framework of the objectives of Saudi Vision 2030, and in implementation of the directives of the wise leadership, and its continued support for the efforts of the concerned authorities in the system of the Ministerial Committee for Traffic Safety.

Saudi Arabia has developed a methodology to monitor the maturity of strategic performance indicators by setting annual targets to achieve the approved annual strategic indicator target for reducing deaths per 100,000 people.

The concerned authorities in the system of the Ministerial Committee for Traffic Safety and the traffic safety committees in the emirates of various provinces are working to achieve a tangible reduction in serious traffic accidents. This is through implementing engineering upgrading on main and highway roads and providing them with safety requirements, and strengthening traffic control on all roads with modern technologies and systematic campaigns to deal with traffic violations. This is in addition to activating air ambulance services in five regions, identifying areas that need additional reinforcement, raising health capabilities to deal with traffic accident victims, and establishing medical centers specialized in dealing with such injuries.