Dr Rosemary Kalapurakal
Every morning, millions of Zimbabweans begin a journey.
A child walks to school. A trader boards a kombi. A nurse travels to a clinic. A truck driver carries goods along a regional corridor. A family sets out to visit relatives. Each expects to arrive safely. But for too many, an ordinary journey ends in tragedy.
In 2024, Zimbabwe recorded 52 288 road crashes, 2 015 deaths and 10 074 injuries. That is roughly five lives lost every day.
What is concerning is that the United Nations (UN) agency WHO (World Health Organisation) estimates that this fatality rate is roughly 53 percent higher than the African regional average — 19,6 percent — and about double the indicative global average.
The statistics mask human stories: families grieving loved ones, children left without caregivers and communities changed forever.
They also expose deep inequalities.
Pedestrians, schoolchildren and public transport users are among those most exposed, yet often have the least power to choose a safer vehicle, route or time to travel. In Zimbabwe, as elsewhere, road traffic injuries remain a significant cause of death and disability among children and adolescents, particularly boys.
And for survivors and their caregivers, the consequences can last a lifetime.
Spinal injuries, amputations and brain injuries may bring continuing rehabilitation costs, lost income and social exclusion, pushing families deeper into poverty.
As part of this month’s “One UN, Together for Zimbabwe” reflections on development challenges that require coordinated action, road safety stands out as an issue that cuts across sectors and affects every community.
Its impacts are felt across health, education, social protection, productivity, trade and economic growth. It also cuts directly across Zimbabwe’s ambition to achieve upper middle-income status under Vision 2030.
Road safety is not only a matter for motorists or the police. Crashes place pressure on hospitals, ambulances and rehabilitation services. They keep children from school, remove workers from the economy, disrupt freight and impose heavy costs on households and businesses.
Road crashes are estimated to cost Zimbabwe about 3 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) each year.
A great deal has already been done, with the Government investing significantly in strengthening road safety.
The country has a comprehensive motorcycle helmet law, alongside legislation on drink-driving, drug-driving, distracted driving, seatbelts and speed limits, a mandatory third-party insurance requirement, an existing national lead agency for road safety and safety standards applied to used-vehicle imports.
We often describe crashes as isolated events caused by one reckless decision, one defective vehicle or one dangerous stretch of road. But when the same tragedies recur every day, they point to a wider system that must change.
Every road user has a responsibility.
Drivers must slow down, avoid dangerous overtaking, never drive while impaired or fatigued, put away their phones and ensure seatbelts are used.
Passengers should speak up when a driver puts lives at risk.
Pedestrians and cyclists should use designated facilities where these exist.
But responsible behaviour must be supported by a system designed to protect life.
The principle behind the globally accepted “Safe System” approach is clear: People will sometimes make mistakes, but those mistakes should not cost a life.
Roads, vehicles, speeds, enforcement and emergency care must work together so that one error does not become a death sentence or cause serious injuries.
For children and the youth, this means safe pedestrian walkways and crossings, clearly marked school zones, safer public transport access points and effective speed management around schools and areas where young people live and play.
Evidence shows that lower speed limits around schools, combined with enforcement, can significantly reduce injury severity when crashes occur.
It also means promoting helmet use, child restraints, stronger action against drink-driving and policies that encourage safer driving practices among young drivers. It requires stronger health systems, with faster emergency response, improved referral pathways, trauma care capacity, first-aid skills in communities and access to rehabilitation services, which can mean the difference between life and death, or between recovery and permanent disability.
So, what the country needs now is to build on the foundation that already exists and move decisively to an integrated national platform that brings together the Government, local authorities, the private sector, insurers, development partners, civil society, communities and citizens behind clear targets and public accountability.
Building on existing efforts, Zimbabwe could bring these strands together through a comprehensive Road Safety 2030 Initiative: Government-led, private-sector powered, and supported by development partners, with the UN helping convene stakeholders and providing technical support.
The initiative should be ambitious, with the aim of reducing deaths and serious injuries by 50 percent by 2030, with an initial reduction of 25 percent within 24 months.
There is a role for everyone.
The Government must lead on standards, enforcement, investment and accountability. Local authorities must design streets around people, not only vehicles.
Transport operators must make passenger safety non-negotiable.
Schools can teach safe mobility.
Communities can identify dangerous crossings and school zones. Employers can set strong fleet-safety rules.
Citizens can slow down, buckle up, maintain vehicles and refuse distracted or impaired driving.
Better evidence must underpin these efforts. Stronger data systems can help identify where crashes occur, who is most affected and which interventions deliver the greatest impact.
This allows resources, legislation and enforcement to be directed where they can save the most lives.
Effective rollout and implementation will require coherent investment in four connected areas: stronger leadership, data and accountability; safer roads, vehicles and smart mobility; safer communities and responsible road use; and faster emergency response, trauma care and long-term rehabilitation.
Financing must be equally joined up.
Government budgets are essential, but they need not act alone. Development banks can help finance safer corridors and systems. Insurers can invest in prevention, data and rehabilitation. Mining, logistics and transport companies can improve fleet standards and the corridors they use.
Technology and telecommunications firms can support emergency communications and transparent traffic management.
The media can keep solutions and accountability in the public eye throughout the year.
Road safety cannot be remembered only after a major crash or during holidays.
Road safety must become part of Zimbabwe’s development trajectory.
It must shape how Zimbabwe plans cities, builds roads, licenses vehicles, operates public transport, finances development and values human life. Safer roads will save lives.
They will also protect families, strengthen human capital, preserve productivity and support Zimbabwe’s journey towards inclusive and sustainable development.
Every journey should end with someone arriving home safely.
With coordinated action and shared responsibility, that is an expectation Zimbabwe can increasingly make a reality.
Dr Rosemary Kalapurakal is the United Nations resident coordinator in Zimbabwe
