Schools in Côte d’Ivoire and Senegal received life-saving road safety infrastructure upgrades by Amend with funding from the Agence Française de Développement (AFD) and FIA Foundation.

A child in Africa is twice as likely to die in a road traffic crash as one anywhere else in the world, according to the World Health Organization. Road traffic crashes are the leading cause of death and disability among children over the age of five across the whole of Africa. 

According to the Senegalese Ministry of Infrastructure, Land, and Air Transport (MITTA), more than 700 people die annually on the country’s roads, two-thirds of which are people aged between three and 35 years. In Côte d’Ivoire, road crashes cause the loss of 1,000 lives annually according to the Ministry of Transport. The project schools were selected as they have all seen road traffic deaths and injuries.

Safe Schools Africa provides effective, targeted technical assistance on road projects across Sub-Saharan Africa to ensure that roads are designed and built safely for children and other vulnerable road users. Safe Schools Africa is built on the foundations of Amend’s award-winning School Area Road Safety Assessments and Improvements (SARSAI) programme. 

The SARSAI modifications carried out in late 2024 included the installation of speed reduction to 30km/h, speed bumps, road crossings, safety barriers, and road signs. These are estimated to provide safer school journeys for some 3,000 students and staff, and more than 3,000 residents in Thiès, Senegal; and at least 4,000 students and residents in Bouaké, Côte d’Ivoire.

The completion of the upgrades was marked by ribbon-cutting events at the project schools in Bouaké and Thiès, bringing together project stakeholders, representatives from the education department and educational institutions, national government and local mayors, international organisations, local NGOs, and national and local media. 

Speaking on behalf of the Senegalese Ministry of Infrastructure, Land, and Air Transport (MITTA) in Thiès, Moustapha Gueye, Technical Advisor to the Minister for Road Safety said "We live in a country where the road kills more people than any other disease. In this context, this project is not only important, it is a project for life."

Speaking at the ribbon-cutting event in Bouaké, The Agence Française de Développement Task Team Leader for Transport Valentine Monnier said: "The City of Bouaké and the MOT are very invested in road safety issues, and AFD is pleased to support the authorities. This works with a better collection of crash data thanks to the various stakeholders involved: the fire brigade, the University Hospital, the police, the University of Bouaké and the Institut de Recherche et Développement (IRD). This data makes it possible to identify high-risk areas and respond with concrete actions such as implementing safety measures in school zones. Enabling children to access education without risk is essential.”

The implementation at the four schools is just the start of a multi-stakeholder collaboration that will keep working together in the years to come to make sure that children are kept safe in Senegal and Côte d’Ivoire.