DVLA urged to re-examine mode of issuing licenses

Kumasi, June 7, GNA - Participants at a training course on injury control in Kumasi, have stressed the need for the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Authority (DVLA) to review its mode of licensing by ensuring that applicants pass the requisite tests before they are permitted to use the roads.

There is also the need for an effective and responsible use of the media to increase public awareness in road safety, the participants stated in a communiqu=E9 issued at the end of the four-day training course.

It was organized by the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) School of Medical Sciences (SMS) in collaboration with the University of Washington.

The participants, drawn from the health institutions, road engineering and research institutions, security services, fire and ambulance services, civil society and the academia, called for a collaborative effort by all stakeholders in the transport industry to help reduce the burden of injury in Ghana.

They called for the institutionalisation and intensification in the training of personnel and paramedics in injury control, as well as the engagement of NGOs in the campaign against injuries of all forms, especially those resulting from road traffic accidents.

The communiqu=E9 urged the law enforcement agents and health service providers to ensure that, blood samples were taken for blood alcohol concentrations on accident victims and drivers, while first aid training, including cardio pulmonary resuscitation were promoted widely in the country.

It further called on stakeholders to collate and analyse all black spots in the country's roads and make the information public to enable drivers and passengers to take precautionary measures while travelling on those areas.