The eye-catching and entertaining Botswana Movement for Democracy (BMD)’s congress held over the President’s Holiday has birthed countless soothsayers and self-styled philosophers who are having a field day in spewing drivel and boasting that they prophesied the split of the BMD following weeks of internal turmoil. The chest-thumping wing nuts are excitedly convinced that theirs was authoritative prediction.
In effect, every Tom, Dick and Harry including those who were hearing about the BMD for the first time, jostles for space to broadcast their rabid conspiracy theories. Ultimately, the troublesome story about the BMD and the future of Botswana’s politics has been reduced to fictional stuff wherein animated but mentally deranged sleepwalkers dish out bizarre divination. Since they need space, let them get it until they are done with their self-humiliation. In the meantime I propose to discuss something else that nevertheless is overwhelmingly critical to the future of the country.
By any comparison, Botswana’s road traffic fatality rate is unacceptably high relative to her population. Yet it would seem that this high road fatality rate has meant that death on the roads has become a readily acceptable part of our daily life with social media drunks engaging in a peeving competition for breaking road accidents news. On an annual basis, the Botswana Police record close to 1000 death and countless serious injuries resulting from road accidents. These road accidents are caused by numerous factors ranging from excessive speed; general bad condition of roads; unlicensed drivers; un-roadworthy vehicles; stray or free range animals and so forth.
The Botswana Police also reports that traffic accidents are more common during public holidays when many people travel to their home villages. In this discussion, the Badge of Courage seeks to highlights the problem of livestock on highways particularly the prevalence of vehicle-animal collisions with the aim of provoking a national discussion on the issue especially the countermeasures that could be trialled.
Driving along Botswana’s highways and rural roads one is confronted by the tear-jerking sight of road kill ÔÇô that is, animals that have been knocked down to death by motorists. The sight of dead animals instantly reminds one about the possibility of lost lives and damaged property. To those who had the harrowing experience of having buried their loved ones who lost their lives due to road traffic accidents, the sight of road kill and mangled vehicles on roadways makes them relive their traumas one more time. It is a reminder that travelling on Botswana’s roads is like participating in a race to death.
It is a reminder that you could be next to join the departed as a consequence of a road accident. Vehicle-animal collisions often result in injury and hospitalization and/or funeral costs, permanent disability resulting in loss of income, high lifetime costs of care and death of humans and animals. Vehicle-animal collisions also result in damages to vehicles resulting in huge costs for repair. Thus, vehicle-animal crashes results in millions of Pula in insurance claims.
At the macroeconomic level the World Health Organization estimates that road traffic accidents both resulting from vehicle-animals crashes and general bad conditions of roads cost developing countries in excess of between 1% and 2% of their Gross Domestic Product (GDP). Essentially, these figures means that the costs of road traffic accidents far exceed the amount the developing countries receive in development assistance. For poorer economies and those experiencing donor withdrawals and declining foreign aid such as Botswana, the costs of road traffic accidents means that rather than prospering such economies are actually decelerating.
Given the extensive network of highways and rural roads throughout Botswana and the number and presence of animals entirely everywhere in Botswana, what it means is that the chances of collisions caused by animals are very high. Thus, road traffic accidents caused by vehicle-animal collisions will continue to become a defining feature of the socio-economic setting of Botswana.
On any given day, irrespective of destination of the journey and time, motorists have to contend with sharing roads with animals especially livestock grazing on road reserves or roadways or crossing the highways anywhere, everywhere. In truth, cattle have become a potential threat to motorists than any other object since they enjoy right of way on roads more than motorists for whom the roads were constructed.
Botswana is witnessing an unprecedented increase in vehicle ownership mainly due to changing lifestyles and the influx of used vehicles from Asia and Europe. Thus, as traffic continue to increase rapidly, collisions between vehicles and animals would seem an inevitable consequence more especially that the number of cattle and wild animals is increasing due to improved animal husbandry and stricter laws against poaching respectively. This raises serious concerns for the safety of lives and property and overall costs to the economy as a whole. Human and animal casualties resulting from these collisions impact badly on the country’s image especially for would-be-visitors. Potential tourists and business people would have to think hard about travelling to Botswana and risk hitting a cow or some other animal. This is likely to considerably hurt the tourism sector which is the second largest revenue earner for the country.
Cattle are the mainstay for Botswana’s economy as they represent the country’s third largest revenue earner after minerals and the tourism sector. Cattle in Botswana are a unique commodity with the same significance as key productive assets in other economies. In actual fact, cattle are a production and consumption good as well as a form of savings. In this regard, the prominent role of cattle as a commodity of exchange means that cattle have a special place within the socio-economic milieu of the Botswana society.
However, many cattle farmers are in actual fact absentee farmers who let their cattle graze anywhere, everywhere at any time of the day. This means that on any given day and at any given time of the day in any part of the country, rural or urban, motorists have to contend with herds of cattle occupying highways and rural roads. The tragic truth is that in spite of their central role in the national economy, cattle are a hazard for motorists. They are responsible for a considerable number of accidents, both direct vehicle-animal collisions and such other accidents involving a vehicle veering off road while attempting to avoid hitting a cow.
In spite of this painful reality of fatalities and accompanying costs occasioned by vehicle-animal collisions, there seems to be no comprehensive strategies to improve road safety. Apart from constructing fences to prevent animals from entering the roadways and pleading with motorists to be extra cautious, there are no other effective measures to ensure safe roads.
The Badge of Courage calls upon the Government of Botswana to initiate a national road safety strategy and plan of action to secure human and animal lives on highways and rural roads. As a starting point, the government of Botswana and other stakeholders in the field of road traffic safety must commission a rigorous study to evaluate strategies currently in place particularly the fencing component. There is need to evaluate the effectiveness of fences in preventing animals from entering highways.
The maintenance of these fences is either proving problematic or the authorities have become complacent so much that many have been left to fall apart or have been deliberately destroyed by farmers in order to allow their cattle to freely graze on the roadways. Admittedly, fencing to prevent animals from entering highways has helped considerably but needs to be revamped or complemented by others measures to optimize their effectiveness. In developing a tailored strategy and action plan, a multi-stakeholder approach is imperative in order to devise various interventions that complement each other.
In some parts of the world, animal repellents such as predator scents have been used to keep animals away from road reserves. Spraying grass and other plants with predator scents ensures that animals do not graze or feed on roadways. Some nations use road side reflectors or mirrors while others use thermal imaging, which though prohibitively costly, have helped to reduce incidences of vehicle-animal collisions.
Some other countries have enacted tough laws with deterrent fines such as those that empower the state to seize, impound, auction and/or destroy animals that stray or graze on highways. This has tended to compel farmers to take care of their cattle.
The president-in-waiting, His Honour, Vice President Masisi may want to hit the ground running by tackling this scourge head-on.
People’s lives matter! Animals’ lives also matter!
