Tema, Oct. 10, GNA - Mrs Dzifa Attivor, Deputy Minister of Transport has underscored the need for innovative road safety strategies to minimize the unfortunate carnage on the roads.

She pointed out that road safety was both a public health and developmental challenge that required a total commitment from stakeholders for attitudinal change of operators and the enforcement of the laws. This, she said, would allow the transport sector to play its basic role in the socio-economic transformation of the nation.

Mrs Attivor was opening a two-million-dollar showroom constructed by RANA Motors in Tema, as part of measures to ensure excellence and offer better service to its valued clients.

The Showroom, christened VULCO, a one-stop shop concept, would give customers a wide range of tyre brands, vehicle accessories and services for batteries, brakes and lubricants among other things to suit their choice and needs.

Mrs Attivor said it was regrettable that, projections from the National Road Safety Commission (NRSC), indicated that road accidents would take a third place on the list of causes of death by the year 2020, if nothing substantive and immediate was done about the present situation. She said the urgency to curb the menace, had resulted in the on-going concerted efforts on the part of government, the private sector and the general public to come out with strategies to curtail it.

Mrs Attivor pledged the Ministry's determination to encourage and motivate the private sector not only to ensure an efficient, cost-effective, reliable and safe transportation system, but also to fully support government's socio-economic drive to make life more comfortable, safe and enjoyable for the greater majority of Ghanaians.

She said over the years, safety on our roads had been compromised, largely by poor vehicle maintenance, lack of adequate and genuine spare parts, as well as human-induced errors, such as drunk driving, poor visibility, recklessness and general indiscipline.

As a result, she said, road accidents which used to be sixth on the list of 10 major causes of death in the country, had now assumed a position of prominence on the nation's all-kill-factor list. Mrs Attivor pledged that as the lead agencies, the NRSC and the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Authority (DVLA) would be strengthened, to enable them to deliver on their mandate, by promoting road safety campaigns and safety standards in the country.

She commended RANA Motors for its positive contribution towards the development of the nation's road transport industry, and appealed to auto distribution and related companies to set up vehicle assembling plants to provide more employment for the teeming youth.

She charged technicians and artisans to venture into vehicle manufacturing as the nation moved gradually to achieve its desire to be counted among the top economies of the developing world by the year 2020. Mr Essam Odaymat, Chief Executive Officer of RANA Motors Group, traced the historical background of the VULCO Concept to France, and said after taking off in that country, the concept had since extended to Spain, Portugal, Belgium, Croatia, Slovenia and Morocco. He said it had become a preferred shopping stop for most motorists in those countries.

Mr Odaymat assured customers that the Tema VULCO Showroom, the first to be opened in West Africa, would be manned by friendly product and service advisors who would identify customer needs and offer suitable recommendations best suited for their vehicles. 10 Oct. 09