Road traffic accidents in Ethiopia are a major problem with various aspects of causes and lack of management and policy on road safety. Traffic accidents are increasing over time while there is no structural national government policy involving infrastructural, and legal issues. Even though the government regulated draft strategies to improve traffic efficiency and reduce road traffic accidents, major problems are escalated by pedestrians as well as drivers. Drivers' bad behavior including aggressiveness and actions are the main contributor of traffic accident in Ethiopia.

Bus flipped aside of road in 2007

In 2021, the Federal Police Commission recorded 15,034 road accidents during fiscal year starting from 7 July 2021, leaving 4,161 people dead. The World Health Organization (WHO) in 2013 reported that Ethiopia recorded the highest road traffic accident, estimated about 4,984.3 deaths per 100,000 vehicles per year.[1]

Prevalence

A cargo vehicle accident in rocky place in Debarq, Amhara Region, 2009

In Ethiopia, road traffic accident is a serious problem that occurs periodically. The Analyzing Traffic Accident research suggested that there were more than 29,1577 accidents in the past eleven years, including 912,956 kilometers road network and 68,100 motorized vehicles were developed. From 2007/2008 years to 2017/2018 years, the variation of road network coverage in kilometer and motorized vehicle were estimated around 25,914 and 563,003 respectively.[2]

According to the Amhara Region Police Commission, almost half of 51% of car accidents occurred by freight vehicles followed by passenger vehicles which constituted 34.5% of all accidents in the region. About half of 54.8% of accidents occurred on expressway.[3] From April to June 2015, STEPS conducted surveys between the age of 15 and 69 using violence and injury questions by using WHO standard questionnaire. The respondents involved road traffic crash during the past 12 months, by sex, age, and place of residence as follows:[4][5]

Age group (years) Percent Involved in road traffic crashes
Men Women Both sexes
% Involved in road traffic crashes % Involved in road traffic crashes % Involved in road traffic crashes
15-29 3.2 2.0 2.7
30-44 3.3 1.6 2.5
45-59 3.8 2.0 3.1
60-69 2.8 1.2 2.2
Rural 3.1 1.9 2.6
Urban 4.4 1.5 2.8
15-69 3.3 1.9 2.7

In 2021, the Federal Police Commission report issued that the country experienced 15,034 road accidents during the fiscal year that ended on 7 July 2021, leaving 4,161 people dead. The accidents left 5,763 injuries, while 5,110 others sustained minor injuries. Police also recorded 31,643 accidents that caused property damage worth more than 2.28 million birr.[6] The World Health Organization (WHO) reported in 2013 that Ethiopia is amongst country to have the highest road accident, estimated about 4,984.3 deaths per 100,000 vehicles per year, compared to 574 across Sub-Saharan countries. In addition, the number of people who are victims of car crashes are about 30 times higher than of the United States.[1]

As of 3 March 2021, the Federal Police Commission said some 1,848 people died from traffic accidents in Ethiopia during the first six months of the 2020–21 fiscal year starting from July 2020.[7]

Causes

Flipped truck in Oromia Region in 2000

There are several factors that lead to road traffic accidents in Ethiopia, such as driver, vehicle, road, and environmental factors.

The causative factors of road traffic accident in Ethiopia


Driver factors: The major causes of Road traffic accidents in Ethiopia are driver factors such as not giving way to both vehicles and pedestrians, driving too close, not using the right side, and improper turning.[8] From 1999 to 2013, most causes of traffic accidents were male drivers, uneducated people, experienced drivers, and vehicles that had been used for a fairly long period of time. [8] [9][10] Factors such as sleep while driving, over speeding, overloading, and drunk driving also play a big role in causing road traffic accidents. [8]Experienced drivers with better knowledge about the characteristics of the road, safety, traffic signs, and rules tend to cause fewer traffic accidents. While drivers with low experience cause more accidents. [11]The older one gets, the fewer accidents they are likely to cause because they are more likely to be experienced than the young. Hence, drivers who are between the ages of 18 and 30 and 31 and 50 are the ones who cause more traffic accidents than the older ones (>51).[8] Female drivers are more responsible when driving and less likely to cause accidents than male drivers. Most male drivers are emotional and might be addicted to substances like chat. But this could also be since there are fewer female drivers than male drivers.[8] [1]A lack of education is also rarely underreported. In January 2018, retrospective research was conducted in Finote Selam traffic police office, and 255 records were taken from September 2009 to the date. The result showed that drivers' educational level played a crucial role in road traffic accidents such as people below 12th grade were the most contributor of fatal car accidents.[10]

REASONS 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 TOTAL PERCENTAGE
Drunk driving 3 2 696 130 45 826 1.54
Not give way for vehicles 1453   1185 1515 2838 4131 24758 43.57
Not give way for pedestrians 1115 1169 1692 2159 2514 8649 15.22
Coming too close 1984     1492 1580 1843 3431 10330 18.17
Improper turning 970   644 402 564 1149 3729 6.56
Over Speeding 35     65 317 515 499 1431 2.50
Over loading 50     38 20 67 67 242 0.42
Sleep driving -   - 49 1 15 65 0.11
No use of right side 804     605 786 710 1274 4237 7.45
Improper passing 365     295 271 881 701 2504 4.40

Vehicle factors: The vehicle factor is also another important factor that contributes to traffic accidents. The longer the service time the vehicle provides, the higher the probability of the occurrence of mechanical defects, which in turn cause traffic accidents. It is believed that vehicles used for 5 or more years cause more accidents than vehicles used for less than 5 years.[8][11]

Road Factors: Roads with bad surfaces and designs are prone to causing more accidents. Theoretically, roads with bad designs (steep, crossroads, T, O, and X shapes) are considered to be causing more traffic accidents than roads with good designs (street roads), but in reality, RTA is common in street roads in Ethiopia.[8][12]

Environmental factors: Environmental factors like weather and light conditions also have a great contribution to road traffic accidents. One might assume that accidents happen more in the extreme seasons, like the rainy or winter seasons, but it’s the reverse. More accidents happen during the good season. Since people are more active during these seasons, there tend to be more accidents encountered during these seasons.[12] In general, the incidence of accidents is high during the day due to heavy traffic movement (vehicles and pedestrians), but the risk of accidents is higher during the night compared to the day due to darkness, inappropriate use of vehicle lights, and drunk driving. Crowding is another major risk factor for RTA in Ethiopia, and the common risk places are offices, market centers, churches, residential areas, and recreational areas.[8]

Poor infrastructure and low traffic enforcement along with other factors enlisted as the major problem in Ethiopia. In Oromia Region, 14.5% of all accidents and 24% of fatalities, has high traffic movement next to Addis Ababa.[13] Poor insurance law, emergency services, lack of safety knowledge in mixed traffic flow system and poor road network is other factors affecting the traffic. Although the country regulated road safety draft strategies, there is no national government policy in Ethiopia.[12]

The FDRE Ministry of Transport and logistics with other stakeholders and partners has prepared a strategy based on the understanding of local context and international best practices. The strategy aims to reduce fatal road traffic injuries due to road traffic crashes by 50% in the next ten years (2021-2030)[14] These draft strategies on road safety include.

  • Legislation and enforcement
  • Public Awareness/Education
  • Speed Control/ rumble strips
  • Road Improvement
  • Mandatory motorcycle helmet
  • Graduated driver license (GDL)
  • Street lighting

References

  1. 1 2 3 Kussia, Amanuel (2017-01-18). Trends, Causes, and Costs of Road Traffic Accidents in Ethiopia. GRIN Verlag. ISBN 978-3-668-38822-2.
  2. ↑ Deme, Debela (2019-06-14). "Road Traffic Accident in Ethiopia from 2007/08-2017/18". American International Journal of Sciences and Engineering Research. 2 (2): 49–59. doi:10.46545/aijser.v2i2.90. ISSN 2641-0311. S2CID 202189653.
  3. ↑ "Road traffic accident: The neglected health problem". 6 October 2022.
  4. ↑ "Ethiopia STEPS Survey 2015 - WHO/OMS: Extranet Systems". 6 October 2022.
  5. ↑ Gebremichael, Mussie; Guta, Mulugeta; Gedefaw, Mola; Bekele, Alemayehu; Shiferaw, Fassil; Gelibo, Terefe; Getachew, Theodros; Mudie, Kissi; Amenu, Kassahun; Defar, Atkure; Teklie, Habtamu; Taddele, Tefera; Taye, Girum; Getnet, Misrak; Gonfa, Geremew (2017). "Prevalence and determinants of road traffic injuries in Ethiopia: Based on the 2015 STEPS survey findings". Ethiopian Journal of Health Development. 31 (1): 340–347. ISSN 1021-6790.
  6. ↑ Monitor, Ethiopian (2021-08-03). "Over 4,160 Killed in Traffic Accidents last Fiscal Year". Ethiopian Monitor. Retrieved 2022-10-06.
  7. ↑ "Traffic accidents kill over 1,840 Ethiopian people in 6 months - Xinhua | English.news.cn". www.xinhuanet.com. Retrieved 2022-10-06.
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 "The Economic Effect of Road Traffic Accidents in Ethiopia: Evidence from Addis Ababa City".
  9. ↑ Mekonnen, F. H.; Teshager, S. (2014). "Road traffic accident: The neglected health problem in Amhara National Regional State, Ethiopia". Ethiopian Journal of Health Development. 28 (1): 3–10. ISSN 1021-6790.
  10. 1 2 Tadege, Melaku (2020-05-06). "Determinants of fatal car accident risk in Finote Selam town, Northwest Ethiopia". BMC Public Health. 20 (1): 624. doi:10.1186/s12889-020-08760-z. ISSN 1471-2458. PMC 7201712. PMID 32375719.
  11. 1 2 "Road Traffic Accident in Ethiopia from 2007/08-2017/18 (Since Ethiopia Millennium)". doi:10.1313/aijser.v2i2.90 (inactive 2023-09-17).{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: DOI inactive as of September 2023 (link)
  12. 1 2 3 Persson, A. (July 2008). "Road Traffic Accidents in Ethiopia: Magnitude, Causes and Possible Interventions". Advances in Transportation Studies. 15. ISSN 1824-5463.
  13. ↑ Woyessa, Ashenafi Habte; Heyi, Worku Dechasa; Ture, Nesru Hiko; Moti, Burtukan Kebede (2021-03-01). "Patterns of road traffic accident, nature of related injuries, and post-crash outcome determinants in western Ethiopia - a hospital based study". African Journal of Emergency Medicine. 11 (1): 123–131. doi:10.1016/j.afjem.2020.09.008. ISSN 2211-419X. PMC 7910177. PMID 33680733.
  14. ↑ "NATIONAL ROAD SAFETY STRATEGY" (PDF).

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