WINDHOEK, March 17 (Xinhua) -- Namibia's Motor Vehicle Accident (MVA) Fund on Friday revealed that since the beginning of the 2017 (Jan-Mar), out of the 30 fatalities recorded, 17 percent were children under 10.
The Fund in a statement, cautioned the public ahead of Namibia's Independence celebrations that will take place on March 21, as well as the school break from March 20 to 24.
MVA's Corporate Communication Officer, Belinda Hamburee said this year's 27th Independence celebrations will be held in Rundu which is 714 km from the capital Windhoek and more people are expected to travel long distances on the notorious B1 route to join in the festivities.
"The Fund will put more emphasis on raising public awareness with regard to seatbelt usage, pedestrian safety and child restraint along the B1 stretch during Independence," she added.
Hamburee said with holidays come woes relating to increased risks of vehicle crashes due to heavy traffic flows on national roads.
"On average, two people perished as a result of motor vehicle crashes each day in 2015 and 2016 during independence," she added.
With this in mind the MVA has cautioned drivers to be privy to the risks on the road and to appropriately adjust to the road conditions and rules.
Meanwhile, the World Health Organization states that "correctly used seat-belts reduce the risk of death in a crash by approximately 61 percent and that the use of child restraints can reduce infant death in motor crashes by 71 percent.
