05 Jul 2023

Every year, an average of 400 people lose lives due to road crashes.

Latest statistics from police traffic unit indicate that as from January to June 18, a total of 118 fatal accidents have been recorded, in which 175 people lost their lives as compared to the previous two years where 140 and 124 fatal accidents were registered in 2022 and 2021 and claimed 175 and 164 lives respectively.

Case management supervisor at Motor Vehicle Accident (MVA) Fund, Mr Ikageng Busang has revealed, during claimants and caretaker workshop in Maun recently that a total of 276 accidents had been recorded as compared to 243 registered last year, noting that South Central was leading with 180 while North West registered 13 incidents.
“The statistics are scary and call for action by all as they indicate that road crashes and fatalities remain on an increase in our country’s roads. Let us all join forces with MVA Fund to promote safety measures and reduce the numbers as mostly passengers and pedestrians were the ones losing lives,” he added.

Mr Busang further noted that some of the deceased were breadwinners in their families and their dependents became a burden to government. Safety, he said, should be a responsibility of every individual and called on all to participate in initiatives geared toward it.
 He said police attributed high level of road traffic accidents to careless driving as some drivers failed to obey road signs while some drove under the influence of alcohol.

Outlining the objective of the workshop, Maun MVA Fund branch manager, Mr Cecil Mosojane said they saw it fit to train both the claimants and their caretakers in an effort to strengthen the relationship.
The training, he said, also aimed to promote psychological wellbeing of both the claimants and caregivers; to capacitate them with caregiving skills as well as to share welfare and support services provided by other stakeholders in the community.

Mr Mosojane noted that they brought along the old case claimants to share experiences of their journey to rehabilitation and impart knowledge on management of their severe injuries.
Furthermore, he noted that the fund was mandated to promote road safety and accident prevention, adding that the strategy was to reduce road accidents by sharing safety information.

Sharing some of the benefits offered by the fund, MVA case manager, Ms Neo Oabile revealed that the fund also aimed to enhance quality of life by promoting road safety and rehabilitation of road crash victims through compensation and support of those affected.
Any person injured in a road crash within the borders of Botswana, she said, was eligible to be covered with up to P1 million while a negligent party’s claim was limited to P300 000 and only to the extent of medical treatment and rehabilitation.

Furthermore, the fund, she said assisted severely injured claimants who could not return to work due to the nature of their injuries, adding that they were also eligible for loss of income provided such loss was proven.
Claimants, she said, were also eligible for medical assistance, transport expenses, accommodation and meals for medical appointments in accordance with the fund’s policy. Ms Oabile further said those who lost loved ones as a result of a road crash were assisted with funeral costs to the tune of P7 500 as well as the support dependents if the deceased was a breadwinner.
One of the claimants, Ms Reginah Gabriel thanked MVA Fund for the support, saying it made the survivors to accept their situations.

She motivated other claimants to develop coping mechanisms with their situations and learn to communicate so that their caretakers could understand their needs for proper handling. She encouraged caretakers to exercise patience as at times survivors struggled with depression, anger and trauma. Ends