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As the road safety issue is totally ignored, speakers at a national dialogue stressed the need for special budget allocation and legal framework reform for strengthening safety-related activities to bring discipline in the road transport sector.
They laid importance on integration and cooperation of all relevant agencies to work under an umbrella for ensuring sustainable development of the sector.
The national dialogue on road safety was held at the conference room of the Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA) on Saturday.
Chief Adviser's Special Assistant on Road Transport Sheikh Moinuddin was present as the chief guest and BRTA Chairman Mohammad Yasin attended it as special guest.
Road Safety Foundation (RSF) organised the dialogue with its chairman Professor AI Mahbub Uddin Ahmed in the chair.
Representatives from different government agencies and stakeholders including the additional DIG of Highway Police, the director (operations) of Bangladesh Road Transport Corporation and the secretary general of Bangladesh Road Transport Owners Association took part in the event.
The Chief Adviser's special assistant sharing his plan to form a road safety unit said the dedicated unit being planned under the Roads and Highways Department would ensure carrying out, development and continuation of all transport-related activities in holistic way.
"All act and function different ways, different priorities without coordination," he said, adding that though the country has many experts on road safety, desired success could not be achieved due to lack of coordination.
Citing road safety as the interim government's short-term goal, Dr Moinuddin said coordination is a must and should be carried out under one umbrella as the government is considering the sector as the backbone of the national economy.
In a presentation, Vice President of RSF Syed Jahangir proposed allocation of 15 per cent of the transport sector budget for road safety and establishment of a Tk5.0 billion emergency safety fund.
He also laid importance on installing ITS (Intelligent Transport Systems), GPS, and cameras in public and private transport and introducing national road safety dashboard.
Bangladesh needs a strategic legal and technology-driven road safety agenda which can be achieved through reforms and coordinated investment for achieving global standards.
smunima@yahoo.com