Eswatini’s first National Road Safety Strategy is tackling the safety of the country’s roads with an iRAP assessment of major rural and urban roads planned, and 3-star or better targets to be achieved by 2030.

Aligned to the Global Plan for the Decade of Action for Road Safety, the strategy seeks to halve road deaths and injuries on Eswatini’s roads by 2030, and eliminate them altogether by 2063.

In a region of the world with low levels of safety, Eswatini’s road fatality rates have been steadily increasing:

The strategy seeks to curb the rising toll with a focus across all 12 United Nations Global Road Safety Performance Targets. Key performance indicators and mid-term progress targets are outlined, including for Targets 3 and 4 for safer road infrastructure, for the highway network and more than 75 per cent of travel on main roads to achieve a 3-star or better safety rating by 2030.

To improve the safety of the road network, capacity building of local engineers and a comprehensive iRAP assessment is planned to identify medium and long-term safety improvement programs informed by the iRAP Methodology and aligned to international safety standards. With a particular focus on vulnerable road users, evidence-based investment programs will be given major project status, initially in demonstration projects, and then as long-term improvements are rolled out.

Quoted in the Strategy, Chief Ndlaluhlaza Ndwandwe, Minister of Public Works and Transport said, “A comprehensive safety approach is required. This strategy identifies the most critical issues we must face, the strategic directions we must follow and the strategic actions we must take as we set out on this path. All arms of government must assume responsibility for collaboratively addressing this problem which is a leading cause of death for our children, as well as for the most productive age group (15-49 year olds).”

Eswatini’s National Road Safety Strategy 2023-2030 was formulated by the Ministry of Public Works and Transport through the Road Safety Council, assisted by the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) and World Health Organisation (WHO), and through a collective engagement of the transport sector, public and private sector stakeholders, and academia.

According to iRAP Safety Insights Explorer, by achieving the strategy’s target which would see most travel occurring on 3-star or better roads, Eswatini could prevent 100 deaths annually, and nearly 75,000 deaths and serious injuries over 2 years, with an economic benefit of nearly US $17 for every $1 invested.