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Ivan Zhakata Herald Correspondent
JOURNALISTS play a key role in promoting road safety, disseminating preventative messages and promoting safer behaviours, Traffic Safety Council of Zimbabwe (TSCZ) managing director Mr Munesuishe Munodawafa has said.
Speaking during a road safety workshop for journalists, Mr Munodawafa said they were proud and eager to work with journalists in the promotion of road safety through increased road safety awareness thereby achieving the ambitious goal of reducing 50 percent of injuries and deaths caused by road crashes by 2030.
He said the workshop was aimed at exchanging information and deepening journalists’ knowledge on the importance of road safety, infrastructure, and alternative mobility in the country.
“As Journalists, you play a key role in promoting road safety; disseminate preventative messages, promote safer behaviours, and as you advocate for political will to prioritise the issue and advance programmes for improved laws and safer roads, vehicles, and systems,” Mr Munodawafa said.
“The aim is to make media experts to also focus on developing Journalists’ skills to produce data-driven and compelling stories with the depth and capacity to influence policymakers and to strengthen journalists’ knowledge and expand their access to experts with the goal of raising awareness and spurring dialogue around critical, yet under-reported, road safety issues.
“In continuation of this effort to empower journalists by equipping them with best practices and expertise on road safety reporting, TSCZ has come up with an awards ceremony aimed at recognising the efforts of journalists in promoting road safety. Our goal is to empower journalists to report beyond fatalities and injuries only, but to focus more on road safety promoting safer road users and safer roads.”
Mr Munodawafa also encouraged journalists to report factual and truthful issues in line with the development of the country in terms of equipping people on how to use the roads thereby saving lives.
TSCZ director Mr Thomas Mahundi said the workshop was meant to improve and ensure traffic safety on the roads by improving knowledge of road safety to journalists.
“It is from this background that the media plays an important role in promoting road safety by reporting issues of road safety from a road safety perspective rather than reporting death related stories that only cause alarm and negativity among our people.
“There is a huge opportunity to save lives on the roads and to break cycles of poverty seen through poor road user behaviour such as recklessness on the roads from both drivers and pedestrians,” he said.
Peter Tanyanyiwa
Online Reporter