90 Pc Accidents Occur In Third World Countries: Official

KUWAIT CITY, May 11: Deputy Director General for Traffic Affairs Brigadier Saleh Al-Najem disclosed that ro-ad over 1.3 million deaths and 60 million injuries are  recorded annually across the globe.

Brigadier Al-Najem made this disclosure Wednesday during an event the United Nations organized on road safety in Mishref to minimize the economic, social and environmental expenditures. Present at the event was representatives of the United Nations Dr. Adam Abdul-Moula,  as well as other representatives from the Ministries of Health, Education, Public Works and Municipality Affairs. Also in attendance were Assistant Director General for Technical Affairs at the Traffic Department Brigadier Majham Al-Jalal and Brigadier Senafi Al-Ajmi.

According to Al-Najem, about 90 percent of accidents occur in countries with low and medium income, even though those countries possess only 48 percent of vehicles in the world. He stated that accidents account for the majority of deaths among youths between 10-25 years of age. He pointed out that countries are evaluated by the ability to organize traffic at an acceptable level for smooth economic and social activities with high degree of safety. He noted that the international community is aware of that fact, which prompted the recent concern about the issue. He added that the United Nations General Assembly approved it as part of the permanent development in 2003. He informed that the United Nations, in March 2010, chose May 11, 2011 as the starting date for the decade campaign 2011-2020. 

Agencies add: 
Beggar held: Police have arrested an Egyptian man for begging for alms and referred him to the Deportation Centre, reports Al-Rai daily.

According to reports when police took the man into custody, they found on his person KD 7,000.

Police said the man arrived into the country on visit visa and he admitted to 'earning' the money by begging.

Police records show the man overstayed into the country for three months after the expiry of his visit visa.

However, when the man's cousin (the sponsor of the visit visa) was summoned by police, he claimed the man could not return to Egypt due to unrest in the country.

Police are initiating action against the cousin.

© Arab Times 2011