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A training of some selected staff of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) from across the country on non-motorised transportation system, which started on Monday, ends this Friday in Abuja. The training, which was declared opened by the Corps Marshal, Dr. Boboye Oyeyemi, at the FRSC National Headquarters, Abuja, was organised in partnership with the Dutch Embassy, as part of FRSC’s advocacy programme on non-motorised transportation system in collaboration with relevant stakeholders towards the attainment of the Corps’ 2017 strategic goals.
Declaring the workshop opened on Monday, the Corps Marshal expressed pleasure at the successful commencement of the second phase of the training on traffic safety for non-motorised transportation (NMT) system in Nigeria, noting that the programme was part of the Netherlands Fellowship Program (NFP) funded by its Ministry of Foreign Affairs through the Dutch Embassy in Nigeria sequel to a proposal made by the FRSC.
Oyeyemi said the purpose of the training was to improve the knowledge of the staff on non-motorised transportation system with a view to enhancing the Corps’ advocacy and expertise for safety of the users of the mode of transportation in the country. He stressed that FRSC has for several years been at the forefront of campaign for cycling in Nigeria, saying as part of its advocacy programmes, it has developed documents, built collaborations and initiated various programme of activities, including the National Bicycle Week.
“The initiatives are geared towards increasing the share of cycling and improving safety and wellbeing of not only the cyclists but other non-motorized users of roads in Nigeria,” the Corps Marshal stated.
He said the training marks another milestone in the Corps’ determination to mainstream non-motorised form of transportation, especially with the revelation by the World Health Organisation (WHO), which indicated that pedestrians form about 39 percent of road fatalities in Africa.
According to him, the training was part of the efforts being made to meet the goals of the United Nations Decade of Action For Road Safety: 2011-2020, which target reduction of road traffic crashes and fatalities by 50 percent by the year 2020.
The Corps Marshal emphasised the importance of the training, which started with a pre-training visit to Nigeria by the Dutch training provider who came to ascertain the exact training needs and inspect available infrastructure for non-motorised form of transportation in the country.
“This was done through visits to urban roads in Abuja, interaction with relevant stakeholders and studying reports of the past efforts to popularise the use of the system with a view to modifying the training curriculum to suit the local need,” he further stated.
The Corps Marshal called on the 15 participating staff to study the routes to schools in Federal Capital Territory (FCT) for enhancement of safety of the children that walk or cycle; undergo group case studies and observe a day set aside as stakeholders’ engagement day to interact and draw from the Netherlands cycling and walking with Nigerian experience.
He appreciated the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs for providing the platform and funding for the training and appealed for sustained support.
In her remarks, the representative of the Netherland Embassy in Nigeria, Femitayo Adebiyi, commended the FRSC for utilising the training opportunity provided by the Embassy for its officers. She stated that the Embassy has been involved in such programme for its host countries for a very long time, assuring that it will continue to support the Corps in its future training programmes.
Non-motorised training (NMT) for FRSC staff is a specialised training on the use of non-motorised form of transportation in the efforts to promote alternative transportation system, especially the use of bicycle.
Source: FRSC News
