Road accidents claimed 969 Nigerian children in 2008, Sen. Akinlabi Olasunkanmi, the Minister of Youth Development has said in Abuja. But the FRSC Corps Marshal, Mr Osita Chidoka yesterday said more than 500 children died daily in road traffic crashes (RTC) worldwide.

Olasunkanmi, who was represented by a Director of Youth and Education in the Ministry, Hajiya Rabi Jimeta stated this at a one-day Youth Road Safety Awareness programme organised by the FRSC, FCT Command.

"In Nigeria, according to the FRSC, in 2008 alone, about 969 children and youths were killed in road accidents, while over 6,217 were injured. The World Health Organisation (WHO) in its 2007 report titled 'Youth and Road Accidents' says that nearly 400,000 young people under the age of 25 are killed in road traffic crashes every year. Millions are disabled," the minister said.

According to him, road safety is a serious national and universal issue that demands urgent attention because it affects every Nigerian.

He said every Nigerian, particularly the youths who constituted the greatest road users, have a responsibility to ensure that the roads are safe for drivers and other users.

Urging young people through their NGOs to help educate commercial drivers and motor cycle riders, many of whom are young people like themselves, the minister blamed the blatant disregard for road signs and the principles guiding road usage as causes of fatal accidents with great economic, emotional and psychological losses.

He said that discipline, respecting speed limits and other road safety regulations, using seat belts and obeying traffic lights are ways of out of accidents.

Chidoka said this in Uyo during the 'Youth Say No to Road Traffic Crashes' awareness Programme.

He said the programme was aimed at encouraging youths and children to lend their voices to calls for decisive action against rising road accidents and their toll on the populace.

"They want to be involved in stemming the tide. They want government to lend its enormous will to putting in place interventions both legal and infrastructural, to drastically reduce the WHO projected rise in RTC," he said.

He said WHO had projected road crashes as the third largest killer of young people by 2020.

The corps marshal, who was represented by the State Sector Commander, Mr Peter Kibo, said FRSC was liaising with the Federal Ministry of Education to design a curriculum for road safety in schools.

He said there were 716 Road Safety Clubs in schools with 23,496 children involved nationwide, adding that more clubs would be opened.

Earlier, Mr Chukwuemeka Umunna, Cadet in Chief of the FRSC/NYSC, said more than 3,000 people die through crashes daily.

Umuuna said by 2015, crashes would be the third highest killer of young people next to malaria and tuberculosis.

He cited the lack of road infrastructure, driving schools and testing grounds for would be drivers as some of the factors leading to road accidents.