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| Saturday, 24 April 2004 |
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Road traffic accidents, a major public health crisis by Kanaga Raja, Geneva Worldwide, road crashes are the second leading cause of death among people aged 5 to 29, and road traffic injuries cost between 1% and 2% of gross national product, about $518 billion every year, according to a new report on road traffic injury prevention.
Without immediate action to improve road safety, road traffic deaths will increase by 80% in low- and middle-income countries by 2020, the report warns. The report estimates that worldwide, the number of people killed in road traffic crashes each year is almost 1.2 million, while the number of injured or disabled could be as high as 50 million. Injuries represent 12% of the global burden of disease, the third most important cause of overall mortality and the main cause of death among 1-40-year-olds. According to the report, one of the main factors contributing to the increase in road crash injury worldwide is the growing number of motor vehicles. In China, where the economy is experiencing rapid growth, since 1990 the number of vehicles has more than quadrupled to over 55 million. Likewise, in India between 1990 and 1993, the number of four-wheeled motor vehicles increased by 23% to 4.5 million. The vast majority (90%) of road traffic deaths were in low- and middle-income countries, while only 10% of road traffic deaths occurred in high-income countries. According to WHO data, road traffic injuries accounted in 2003 for 2.1% of all global deaths and was the 11th leading cause of death. With just over 300,000, the Western Pacific region recorded the highest absolute number of deaths in 2002, while the high-income countries in Europe had the lowest road traffic fatality rate of 11 per 100,000. While there has been a decrease since the 1960s and 1970s in the numbers and rates of fatalities in high-income countries, there has been a pronounced rise in numbers and rates in many low- and middle-income countries. The report predicted that between 2000 and 2020, South Asia will record the largest growth in road traffic deaths, with a dramatic increase of 144%. And by 2020, road traffic injuries will rise in rank to sixth place as a major cause of death worldwide. Road traffic deaths will increase on average by over 80% in low- and middle-income countries and decline by almost 30% in high-income countries. There are marked differences in fatalities among various groups of road-users. Pedestrians and motorcyclists have the highest rate of injury in Asia, while in Latin America and the Caribbean injuries to pedestrians are the greatest problem. In Africa, injured pedestrians and passengers in mass transportation are the main issue. By contrast, in most OECD countries, car occupants represent more than 60% of all fatalities, a reflection of the greater number of motor vehicles in use. The report found that over 50% of the global mortality due to road traffic injury occurs among young adults aged between 15 and 44 years. And, in 2002, males accounted for 73% of all road traffic deaths, with an overall rate almost three times that for women. In economic terms, the cost of road crash injuries is estimated at roughly 1% of gross national product in low-income countries, 1.5% in middle-income countries and 2% in high-income countries. While the direct economic costs of global road crashes have been estimated at $518 billion, the estimated annual costs of road crash injury in the EU alone exceeds $207 billion. For the US, the human capital costs (or lost productivity) of road traffic crashes in 2000 were estimated at $230 billion, or 2.3% of GDP. The results of a study in the US revealed that 5.27 million people had sustained non-fatal road traffic injuries in 2000, 87% of which were considered 'minor'. These injuries resulted in medical costs of $31.7 billion, placing a huge burden on health care services and individual finances. Information on the economic costs for low-income and middle-income countries is generally scant. However, a recent study from Bangladesh found that, taking into account under-reporting, the cost of traffic crashes in 2000 was about $745 million, or 1.6% of GDP. The cost of road traffic collisions in South Africa for 2000 was estimated at $2 billion; for the government the estimated basic hospital costs alone for the first year of treatment came to some $46.4 million. In China, the estimated annual economic cost of injury is equivalent to $12.5 billion, almost four times the total public health services budget for the country. Despite the large social and economic costs, there has been a relatively small amount of investment in road safety research and development, the report noted. On the increasing use of hand-held mobile phones and their related risks to drivers using them, the report says that there is some evidence from studies that drivers who use mobile telephones while driving face the risk of a crash four times higher than those who do not use them. At least 35 countries have now banned the use of hand-held mobile telephones while driving. - Third World Network Features |
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Produced by Lake House |
The joint report by the World Health Organisation (WHO) and the World
Bank says that the cost of road traffic injuries in low- and middle-income
countries is estimated at $65 billion, exceeding the total amount of aid
received by these countries.
