Road traffic injury is a leading cause of injury, disability and death for children in Africa, particularly in rapidly expanding cities, where traffic planning is rarely a priority, sidewalks are virtually non-existent, and pedestrians are not respected by drivers. Amend has been working to improve road safety in Africa for over 17 years. Amend’s signature program - School Area Road Safety Assessments and Improvements (SARSAI) - has been recognized by the World Health Organization as an important way of making the areas around schools safer for children and has been implemented at 60 schools throughout Africa.

The DH Ross Foundation supported Amend to carry out its first disability-focused SARSAI project, at Wailes Primary School, in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, a school that provides for children with disabilities, and where two children had been killed in road traffic in just the last year. Based on the findings of in-depth consultations with children with disabilities, other children, teachers, members of the wider community and a disability expert, as well as observations and surveys, Amend designed and implemented targeted road infrastructure improvements. These improvements included the provision of walkways with ramps for children using wheelchairs and tactile paving for visually-impaired children, as well as specially-designed signs and murals to alert drivers to the presence of children with disabilities, zebra crossings, and speed humps to reduce vehicle speeds. 

Teachers and parents said that providing safe access to the school would increase levels of attendance among children living with disabilities, improving their life chances. This work not only provided safe access for children with disabilities – it also made the roads safer for all road users, thereby reducing the risks of other people being injured and disabled or killed. Since the infrastructure improvements were completed, no injuries to children have been reported in the area around the school.

The methods developed through this project will allow Amend to: 

• Ensure safe accessibility for children with disabilities on all future SARSAI projects, 

• Support the World Bank and others who fund roads projects in Africa to provide for children with disabilities, and

• Advocate for governments to provide safe access for children with disabilities at all schools.