World Bank (WB) and the United Nations (UN) want to join the government for reversing trends of accidents in the country under a special trust fund.
UN Road Safety Trust Fund was created last year and Bangladesh can be one of the first countries to be benefited from the trust.
This was assured by visiting World Bank Vice President for South Asia Region Hartwig Schafer while addressing an event 'Road safety for all' at a hotel in the capital on Tuesday.
Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal, UN Secretary-General's Special Envoy for Road Safety Jean Todt, Secretary of Road Transport and Highways Division Nazrul Islam and WB Country Director Mercy Tembon addressed the event, among others.
"World Bank is set ready with the UN family and new stakeholders to reverse the human tragedy," the vice president said.
He said road accident is not only a human tragedy but also an economic issue as it causes loss of two to five per cent of GDP (gross domestic product).
The WB official said accidents cause lives of 1.35 million people every year in the world, and 90 per cent of them belong to developing countries.
In South Asia, one in every four people die in road accidents, he said adding that road safety is the key issue in Bangladesh and it needs strong engagement of all stakeholders -- the government, civil society members and institutions -- to reverse the trends.
Lauding the country for its robust growth, the vice president said Bangladesh must take urgent steps to improve road safety.
"Apart from enormous human toll, poor road safety can undermine a country's growth and development," said Schafer. "But, road accidents are largely preventable and the time to act is now. The World Bank and the United Nations together are ready to support Bangladesh to improve road safety."
The finance minister said though the government has made good progress in road infrastructure development by developing 21,000-kilometre highways and regional roads, it is now time to go for quality and enforce laws to save lives.
'Time has come to stop road accidents,' he added.
The minister said unnatural death is always unwanted calling upon the World Bank to join the government's mission.
The UN secretary general's special envoy said the economic and human cost of the untimely deaths and injuries are immense.
"Road crashes are the fourth leading cause of death of children aged between 05 and 14," said Todt adding that 67 per cent victims are within the 15-49 age group in Bangladesh.
"Yet we see tremendous opportunities through the commitment that the government has shown and we look forward to working together for better road safety."
At the same event, the WB and Accident Research Institute of Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET) signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to carry road accident related research and data collection to find solution.
WB Country Director Mercy Tembon and Director of Accident Research Institute Professor Mizanur Rahmann signed the MoU on behalf of their organisations.
The World Bank and the UN, at the event, jointly launched a video competition 'Road Safety Champions' soliciting solutions to make Dhaka roads safer. The competition is for the Bangladeshi youths aged 18 to 23 years.
The World Bank was among the first development partners to support Bangladesh following its independence. Since then, the World Bank has committed more than US$ 30 billion in grants, interest-free, and concessional credits to the country.
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