TANZANIA Breweries Limited (TBL) has sponsored designing of a mobile phone application for digital collection of data on road accidents which it handed over to the Tanzania Traffic Police Force on Wednesday.
Through the application dubbed "Road Safety APP', traffic police officers will be able to collect data and causes of road accidents and use the information to devise mitigation measures for curbing road carnages in the country.
The mobile phone application will be deployed in Dar es Salaam as a pilot project for two years and later be rolled out to other parts of the country.
Speaking during the handing over ceremony in Dar es Salaam on Wednesday, the Commander of the Traffic Police Force, Senior Assistant Commissioner of Police (SACP) Ramadhani Ng'anzi, said digital collection of data on road accidents will play an important role in addressing road carnages.
"Data is very important for any institution to make an analysis of a situation and come up with mitigation measures. The world is moving towards digitised services and this App has come at the right time for us," SACP Ng'anzi stated.
He was equally impressed that the collected statistics will be timely relayed to a data centre to be housed at the headquarters of the traffic police force headquarters.
"The manual system that was hitherto being used in Dar es Salaam and other parts of the country is time consuming and hectic since the collected data takes time before it is submitted to traffic police headquarters and regional traffic police head offices," he explained.
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SACP Ng'anzi hailed TBL for its support in sponsoring several initiatives aimed at bolstering road safety in the country.
"Curbing road accidents is possible through collaboration between traffic police force on one hand as well as road users, other partners and stakeholders," he observed.
On the same occasion, TBL's Head of Logistics, Ms Nancy Riwa, expressed optimism that the mobile application will improve road safety in the country through a collection of data and causes of road accidents.
Through the App, traffic police officers can collect information, resources, and evidence-based recommendations, which will help guide the development of a plan and mobilize efforts to improve road safety and save lives.
"Road accidents have been on the rise in the country leading to loss of lives and property as well as the destruction of the environment and causing adverse effects on the economy.
"TBL is proud to work with the Tanzania Police Force in strengthening road safety on our roads. I urge all road users to be attentive and avoid driving when under influence of alcohol," she stressed.
With this app, the Tanzanian traffic police will be able to collect information, resources, and evidence-based recommendations, which will help guide the development of a plan and mobilize efforts to improve road safety and save lives.
For his part, the Activation Manager of Smart codes Tanzania, which is the brain behind the App, Mr Johnson Bebwa, said the application has been fitted with Geographical Positioning System (GPS) to enable the data centre at the traffic police headquarters to locate the area where the accident has occurred.
