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'Helmet use among women, children still very low'


Published : 13 Mar 2023 09:03 PM | Updated : 13 Mar 2023 09:49 PM

Although the helmet use rate in Dhaka city is satisfactory, the prevalence of helmet use among women and children is still very low, says a study report. 

According to the study, overall helmet use rate is 92%, while correct helmet use among the passengers is only 47% and it is very low among the females and children. 

Findings of roadside observation on behavioral risk-factors for road safety were shared with the key stakeholders at a workshop held at the conference room of Dhaka North City Corporation (DNCC) on Monday (March 13). 

The workshop was organised jointly by the DNCC and Johns Hopkins International Injury Research Unit (JH-IIRU) with technical support from the Centre for Injury Prevention and Research, Bangladesh (CIPRB) and Vital Strategies. 

Md. Salim Reza, Chief Executive Officer (additional secretary) of the Dhaka North City Corporation, spoke at the event as the chief guest, while Engr. Tabassum Abdullah delivered the welcome speech and Brigadier General Md. Jobaedur Rahman, Chief Health Officer of DNCC, placed concluding remarks. Md. Sharif Uddin, Additional Chief Engineer of DNCC, also spoke on the occasion. 

Senior officials from the government organisations, including DNCC, and representatives from the Bloomberg Philanthropies Global Initiative for Road Safety (BIGRS), BIGRS’s partner organisations in Bangladesh (e.g. JH-IIRU, Vital Strategies, GHAI, WHO and WRI), academic institutes and civil society organizations participated in the workshop.

Dr Shirin Wadhwaniya from JH-IRU and Dr Salim Mahmud Chowdhury from CIPRB presented the study findings. 

From their presentations it was found that a total of 356,872 observations were done during the reporting period. Overall helmet use rate was satisfactory. However, seatbelt wearing rate were around 60% among the drivers. However, none of the children travelling by vehicle were found using child-seat or child-restraint. 10% vehicle observed speeding in November 2022 and nearly half of the vehicles in the local roads were observed speeding above the recommended speed (30 km/hour).

Bloomberg Philanthropies is working across the world in different countries and cities including Dhaka North City Corporation to address the huge burden of road traffic injuries and achieving the targets 3.6 and 11.2 of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). 

As part of the BIGRS, Johns Hopkins International Injury Research Unit is periodically conducting roadside observation study with its local partner (Centre for Injury Prevention and Research, Bangladesh) as part of monitoring and evaluating road safety status in DNCC. 

Three rounds of data were collected since August 2021 in DNCC as DNCC has signed an official agreement in leading BIGRS project in the areas under their jurisdiction. 

In his speech, Md. Salim Reza mentioned that they are facing huge economic impact of road crashes in Bangladesh especially in the DNCC area. Besides he talked about the initiatives and current activities taken by DNCC to ensure road safety in his area. 

He requested the audiences to utilize the findings of the roadside observation study while planning the future activities of their organizations.

Md. Sharif Uddin said that DNCC has taken various initiatives to ensure road safety. 

In his speech, Brigadier General Md. Jobaedur Rahman requested everyone to stay united and work with skill and honesty to achieve the targets of SDGs related to road safety.