TITLE:
Key Road Injury Prevention Interventions and Their Effectiveness in Africa: Conclusions and What Can Be Done Better
AUTHORS:
Yolaine Glèlè-Ahanhanzo, Bella Hounkpè Dos Santos, Alphonse Kpozehouen, Donatien Daddah, Moussiliou N. Paraiso, Alain Leveque
KEYWORDS:
Road Safety, Effectiveness, Prevention, Africa
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Journal of Preventive Medicine,
Vol.13 No.11,
November
29,
2023
ABSTRACT: Introduction: This study aimed to identify road safety interventions implemented in Africa and to analyze their effectiveness in reducing road crashes, injuries, disabilities and deaths. Materials and Methods: This is a systematic review including articles relating to the evaluation of road safety interventions implemented in Africa that were searched on electronic databases: PubMed, Scopus, Lissa, Google Scholar, and African Journals Online. Selection of articles and data extraction was conducted by two pairs of reviewers. Data quality was checked according to the type of study. A qualitative analysis of the data was carried out and a narrative approach was adopted to describe and synthesize the results. Results: A total of twenty-nine articles were selected including one cross-sectional study, seven time series, twenty-one quasi-experimental studies of which six randomised and fifteen non-randomised studies. The type of interventions evaluated was aimed at all types of users and was based on different interventions such as institutional strengthening, law enforcement, awareness raising, training or user education, vehicle maintenance and infrastructure improvements. For fourteen studies all the expected indicators had changed favourably and for twelve the indicators had partially changed. The studies that showed significant change were institutional strengthening, law enforcement, awareness raising, training, or user education interventions, development of Uber transport services, distribution of equipment, and a combination of interventions. Conclusion: This situation is indicative of insufficient policy investment in research but also in the field of road safety in general.