Somaliland Road Safety Program

By: Hashi Salah 

somalilandsun- Somaliland Road safety Program, will do its best to bring this traffic accident and issues facing Somaliland to light, and that we welcome people to join our cause and that we don’t discriminate volunteers or ask them about background checks like that divisive forum Somaliland accident prevention, and we are in competition and are in bitter rivalry with the other program and they will not do anything, and they don’t have traffic experience or expertise, and our program does have experts on traffic law and road safety. Our aim is to reduce and get rid of traffic accidents in Somaliland and to make Somaliland road’s safe.

The main issues facing Somaliland is traffic accidents and road fatalities is being irresponsible and negligence behind the wheel of an automobile, and the lack of skills, no drivers license,  no drivers education,  and no knowing the rules of the road are the cause one of the main cause of collisions.  the main rivals like Somaliland accident awareness don’t know the major cause of collisions in Somaliland. The main causes of collisions in Somaliland are various reasons, 
Top seven driver conditions
1. Inattentive driving or distracted driving 
2. Drinking and driving
3. Driver fatigue
4. Medical/physical disability
5. Drugs and driving
6. Vehicle not properly maintained or unsafe for road travel
7. Driving while sick or upset
Top ten driver actions
1. Failure to yield the right-of-way
2. Following too closely
3. Losing control of vehicle
4. Speeding 
5. Disobeying traffic controls
6. Road rage and aggressive driving
7. Street racing and stunt driving
8. Dangerous driving
9. Carlesss driving
10. Reckless driving

Also the main factors of traffic accidents in Somaliland are as mentioned:

10 ways you can help make Somaliland’s roads the safest in Africa
1. Don’t drink and drive. Don’t drive when you’re taking medication that will affect your driving.
2. Obey the speed limits. Slow down when road and weather conditions are poor.
3. Don’t take risks: don’t cut people off in traffic, make sudden lane changes or run yellow lights.
4. Don’t drive when you’re tired, upset or sick.
5. If you’re in doubt, let the other driver go first — yield the right-of-way. 
6. Keep at least a two-second space between your vehicle and the one ahead. To check your distance: start counting when the vehicle ahead passes a fixed object, stop counting when your vehicle reaches the same spot.
7. Cut the distractions: don’t overcrowd the vehicle or play loud music.
8. Always check your blind spot: look in your mirror and over your shoulder before you change lanes.
9. Check traffic in all directions, including any sidewalks and paths/trails, before entering an intersection.
10. Make extra when you are leaving your home or elsewhere to avoid speeding.

Drivers are reminded that many collisions occur when the driving environment is less than optimal. Whether driving at night, during times of reduced visibility or when road conditions are wet and slippery, drivers are encouraged to use the appropriate safe-driving techniques. 
Drivers in Somaliland need to learn defensive driving and they need driver training especially the ones who use commercial vehicles, like trucks or tractor trailors, buses, and taxis, and need to know the dangers of driving and to drive responsible and carefully.

Defensive driving skills as “driving to save lives, time, and money, in spite of the conditions around you and the actions of others.” This definition is taken from the National Safety Council’s Defensive Driving Course.

More needs to be done on road safety measures in Somaliland and that the government should do more on road safety and also the Somaliland traffic department and Somaliland police department, the ministry of interior affairs, and the ministry of public works and the municipalities of Somaliland, Somaliland regions, and that this problem should be addressed to the public in Somaliland and we should have traffic awareness at our schools and that children who are in primary school should be taught about traffic safety that police officers or traffic experts come to talk to the kids.

There should be workshops to address this issues, and our people need to know the seriousness of road collisions in Somaliland.
The traffic law of Somaliland should be changed in some parts, and that we will get to that during the latter part of the session, and that there should be effective traffic signs and there should be red light camera, and that in Somaliland especially the capital hargeisa vehicles fail to stop at red traffic light which is the major cause of accident, and that red means stop and green means go and that yellow mean stop or if you can’t stop drive through the intersection with caution, and that traffic department should have unmarked vehicles on every road in Somaliland to catch offenders. There should be stop signs in area in Hargeisa and the rest of Somaliland for drivers to stop for pedestrians and oncoming traffic and that drivers should learn yielding the right if one vehicle comes before the other vehicle the first has the right of way to go first, and if you 2 vehicles stop at the intersection at the same time the vehicle on the left yields the vehicle on the right to go first. 
Pedestrian accidents and animal accidents are also on the rise on Somaliland, Pedestrians or people who are walking on the roads need to be protected and they need sidewalks and crosswalks, and crossovers and also a flash light that all vehicles come to a complete for pedestrian crossing the streets and that the pedestrians always have the right of away, and pedestrians need to know the dangerous and the seriousness of traffic fatalities and always be cautious and careful and signal the driver if you want cross the street and be aware of surrounding traffic, and that animals should not be loose on the road in Somaliland and that they should be protected as well, and that drivers have to be extra cautious the pedestrians and also they should be very careful around animals.
Pedestrian crosswalks need to be marked.

Not Stopping for an emergency vehicles like ambulances, fire trucks, and police cars are the cause of accidents too, and when you hear the sirens you have to stop  pullover to the right and turn on your signal and stop and let the emergency vehicle get through.

The Traffic police in Somaliland need advance equipment to curb traffic accidents in Somaliland,  They need speed radar, red light camera, and to have unmarked police cruisers that look like a private citizens except the police are in it and they will catch those who break the law. Somaliland needs a ministry approved driver education course and ministry approved instructors that need to pass a driver test and knowledge to test to become driving instructors and that it must be mandatory to have a drivers license in Somaliland and to take 2 tests for your license, the first is the knowledge test and the second is the road test in order to get your license you need to pass and that the examiners have to be fair not take any bribe for the road tests. You need to pass a vision test to get your license, Somaliland needs to be strict on drivers license.

School Buses have to drive in a professional and responsible manner and that they need to know that they are carrying precious cargo which are children and that they can’t speed or race with other vehicles, and that the school buses need to be yellow and have a stop and when they flash their red stop sign light all vehicles must stop and those who don’t stop will face a huge  fine and points on their drivers license and must appear in court and it is breaking the law.

Truck Drivers in Somaliland  Must drive slowly and carefully because they are  driving a heavy machinery and in Ontario the Canadian Province is that Truck are not allowed on the passing lanes on highways and they must be on the slow lane and that needs to be the case in Somaliland that trucks have to slow down and not pass any vehicles on the road.

Construction on road needs to be addressed and that drivers must be warn with signs and there should be traffic control person who is road construction worker should direct the traffic and to guide drivers the way and there should be traffic signs to warn drivers on road constructions.

Somaliland needs to introduce Demerit points A penalty point or demerit point system is one in which a driver’s licensing authority, police force, or other organization issues cumulative demerits, or points to drivers on conviction for road traffic offenses. Points may either be added or subtracted, depending on the particular system in use.

St. John Ambulance recommends that all drivers carry a well-stocked first-aid kit and know how to use it. Consider reading a book about first aid or sign up for a first-aid course. It could mean the difference between life and death in a collision.

Every driver involved in a collision must stay at the scene or return to it immediately and give all possible assistance. If you are not personally involved in a collision, you should stop to offer help if police or other officials have not arrived.

These tips are from the Ontario province of Canada:

In a collision with injuries, possible fuel leaks or serious vehicle damage, stay calm and follow these steps:

• Call for help or have someone else call. By law, you must report any collision to the police when there are injuries or damage to vehicles or other property exceeding $2,000.
• Turn off all engines and turn on emergency flashers. Set up warning signals or flares, or have someone warn approaching drivers.
• Do not let anyone smoke, light a match or put flares near any vehicle, in case of a fuel leak. If a vehicle is on fire, get the people out and make sure everyone is well out of the way. If there is no danger of fire or explosion, leave injured people where they are until trained medical help arrives.
• If you are trained in first aid, treat injuries in the order of urgency, within the level of your training. For example, clear the person’s airway to restore breathing, give rescue breathing or stop bleeding by applying pressure with a clean cloth.
• If you are not trained in first aid, use common sense. For example, people in collisions often go into shock. Cover the person with a jacket or blanket to reduce the effects of shock.
• Stay with injured people until help arrives. 
• Disabled vehicles on the road may be a danger to you and other drivers. Do what you can to make sure everyone involved in a collision is kept safe.

This week I will l debut my video, and this will be the first English video that will talk about Somaliland Traffic accidents and the way of driving in Somaliland and it will be you tube. 

If you are interested in this program, you are welcome to join this program by contacting me through our email address somalilandroadsafety@gmail.com and you can visit us at Somaliland road program at Facebook, Thank you and remember let’s make the roads In Somaliland safe.