Didier Drogba, the new face of a campaign against road insecurity in Africa

Published on : 10/28/2021 – 05:27

Didier Drogba to encourage people to be careful on the road. The former Ivorian football star sponsored, Wednesday, October 27, in Abidjan a campaign on road safety in Africa where more than 250,000 people are killed on the roads each year, the highest rate in the world.

“I am proud to be African. But it breaks my heart to know so many lives lost on our roads in Africa,” said at the ceremony, the ex-Chelsea striker, who was appointed in 2019 Ambassador of the International Automobile Federation (FIA) to promote road safety in Africa.

This campaign, which will be rolled out across the continent, notably features Didier Drogba in one-minute videos giving advice on the dangers of drunk driving, on the seat belt or on speed limits. .

The highest road fatality in the world

The African continent – which however weighs only 2% of the planet’s car fleet – has a road fatality rate of 26.6 per 1,000 inhabitants, the highest road fatality in the world, well above the world average (17.4 per 1,000 inhabitants).

Traffic accidents are the leading cause of death for populations aged 5 to 29.

Côte d’Ivoire is no exception, with an average rate of 24 deaths per 1,000 inhabitants, and more than 12,000 bodily accidents per year, representing a loss of 3% of GDP for the national economy, according to the Ivorian ministry. transports.

With AFP