In celebration of former President Nelson Mandela’s birthday, Deputy Minister of Transport, Mrs Sindisiwe Chikunga spent the day highlighting and addressing pedestrian road safety challenges in Mthatha in the Eastern Cape province.
The Deputy Minister was joined by the MEC for Roads and Transport in the Eastern Cape Province Ms. Thandiswa Marawu, the Director-General of the Department of Transport Mr. George Mahlalela together with national and provincial senior government officials and executives in the private sector.
The Deputy Minister and the team marked the 67 minutes international occasion by embarking on pedestrian road safety awareness programmes and interacting with communities in the province.
In the quest to heighten and emphasize pedestrian road safety awareness the Deputy Minister formed part of an entourage that painted road safety markings on Sutherland, one of the busiest streets and a road safety hazards in the city centre of Mthatha.
Pedestrian deaths account for 46% of the total road fatalities in South Africa.
As part of the celebration of the life and legacy of Nelson Mandela, the Deputy Minister also addressed learners at the Milton Mbekele Senior Secondary School on the importance of road safety.
“Cleary visible road markings play a very important role in road safety. They enhance and facilitate the demarcation of lanes on the roads and help motorist and pedestrians alike to exercise the necessary precautions. This is the reason we are painting these road markings today,” said Deputy Minister Chikunga.
Closing the celebrations for the day, the Deputy Minister awarded the Zenani Mandela Scholarship certificate to Ms. Beauty Mokua from the North West Province at the Nelson Mandela Museum in Qunu.
Annually 12 - 15 participants from around the world take part in the FIA Foundation Scholarship programme. This initiative helps to build capacity and leadership in developing and emerging economies. The Zenani Mandela Scholarship exclusively supports a candidate from South Africa to help develop their expertise in all key aspects of road safety management and policy making.
“It is people like Ms Mokua who become road safety ambassadors throughout the country who help us spread and carry out the message of road safety. We also want to encourage young people and members of the community to join road safety councils in their areas to help us reduce the scourge of road deaths in our country” concluded Deputy Minister Chikunga.
The activities for the day formed part of the Think Pedestrian Road Safety Campaign launched in partnership with Eqstra Fleet Management, the United Nations (UN) and the Nelson Mandela Centre of Memory earlier this year.
For further information:
Tiyani Rikhotso
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