Lusaka, Zambia: Saving lives through safer roads
An estimated 3,586 people die on Zambia’s roads each year, and about 37 percent of those killed are pedestrians, many in the capital city of Lusaka.
Overview
Published: October 2021
In 2015 an estimated 3,586 people died on Zambia’s roads. Over a third of those killed were pedestrians, and many were in the capital city of Lusaka. The city was determined to improve road safety, and to protect children in particular, who can be especially vulnerable to road traffic injuries while walking to and from school.
It is estimated that more than 70% of school-age children in Zambia go to school by foot daily. Children are at a high risk of being in a road traffic crash because many of Lusaka’s streets do not have adequate infrastructure to support children walking to and from school. Motorists also speed and conduct unsafe driving practices near or around schools. National road traffic crash statistics report that181 children under the age of 16 were killed as a result of road traffic crashes in 2018.
In 2017, Lusaka joined the Partnership for Healthy Cities to focus on road safety. The city collaborated with Amend, a road safety organization that implements and evaluates evidence-based programs to reduce road traffic injuries and fatalities across Africa.
Read the full case study: Reducing Speeding Near Schools: Lusaka, Zambia.
Related
Read how the Partnership is supporting policies and interventions that reduce road traffic fatalities and injuries, creating safer streets for everyone.
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The Global status report on road safety 2023 shows that the number of annual road traffic deaths has fallen slightly to 1.19 million.