At Stockholm road safety summit, UN officials join global call to end ‘scourge’ of preventable deaths
(United Nations News) Road traffic accidents take some 1.35 million lives every year and cost most countries three per cent of their gross domestic product, the top UN health official said on Wednesday as the Third Global Ministerial Conference On Road Safety kicked off in Stockholm, Sweden.
According to the UN World Health Organization (WHO), road traffic injuries are the leading cause of death for children and young adults aged 5-29 years.
The millions of lives lost every year due to road traffic collisions is “an outrage”, said WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. “It is an unacceptable price to pay for mobility”.
Moreover, 93 per cent of the world’s road fatalities occur in low- and middle-income countries, even though these nations have approximately 60 per cent of the world’s vehicles.
“Most road traffic deaths and injuries can be prevented, using tried and tested strategies,” stated the WHO chief.
Read more at: UN News