RTA-endorsed 'BE SAFE' book to be distributed to schools and will also be available at Baby Shop and leading stationery stores

May 13, 2007

'BE SAFE', a nationwide road safety campaign jointly launched by Belhasa Driving Center (BDC), Roads & Transport Authority (RTA) and UHU, one of the leading manufacturers in Adhesive products, is gaining momentum as two new sponsors and major schools have joined the campaign. Wild Wadi and Baby Shop have boosted the road safety drive as associate and support sponsors respectively. Further, with the increased participation from schools, school children from leading institutions will be educated on road safety through demonstrations and a new fun-filled activity book that promotes traffic awareness.

Educational institutions, which have expressed their support and interest in the road safety campaign, include the Dubai English Speaking School, Latifa School for Girls, Al Majd English School, Rashid School for Boys, Safa School, Gulf Indian High School, The Central School, Kings Dubai and Delhi Private School.

"We are extremely pleased that major schools have joined us in our drive to make our roads safer for kids. The BDC team is going around schools and giving lectures to school children on road safety and how keeping this in mind can save lives. We are also handing out an activity book designed to raise the safety awareness of our kids when on the road, such as crossing the street or travelling in a car. We have utilized our expertise on road safety and specifically tailored the lecture and the book to make them appealing to school children by using fun-filled learning methods and activities accessible to young learners," said Saif Ahmed Belhasa, Chairman, Belhasa Driving Center.

The BE SAFE campaign was launched in early 2007 in support of the government's efforts to integrate road safety and traffic awareness in private and public school curriculum. The road safety campaign aims to reach 50,000 school children teaching them to be safe road users through traffic safety demonstrations, posters, fun games, brain storming puzzles and educational books. 

"Road mishaps and consequent injuries and mortality continue to be a major concern in developed countries such as UAE, and it is unfortunate that young lives are involved. The awareness campaign is a potent means to educate and empower our kids and through them their parents about safety on the road. The lectures and the new activity book are major parts of our concerted efforts to promote traffic safety and save lives," said, Kish Kothari, Group Marketing Manager of Nishat General Trading (UHU Middle East).

Endorsed by the RTA, 'BE SAFE' is a colourfully illustrated book filled with word games, rhymes, maze, connect-the-dot games and colouring activities all aimed to educate school children on traffic safety such as crossing the street, riding a bike, travelling in a car and in a bus. The kids can avail of the 20-page book for free at all Baby Shop and BDC branches, RTA offices and in over 60 leading stationery stores in the UAE.

"We believe that children can be powerful agents of change. They can share what they have learned in the demonstration and bring the book home to show their families. Holding hands when crossing the street and buckling the safety belt, which are particularly highlighted in the book, are simple and easy ways to keep our kids safe. When children are aware, we empower them to give priority to road safety above anything else. Moreover, children are the future road users, and training them when they are young will eventually breed prudent drivers," said Abby Dean, Marketing Communications Manager, Wild Wadi.

Belhasa Driving Center has taken an active role in promoting road safety across the country. In collaboration with IVV, the institute organized SAFEX 2006, a world training conference aimed to heighten awareness of safe driving practices and pioneered the Driving Instructor Training Programme, an advanced and scientifically-designed skills enhancement programme for driving instructors. The driving institute set a new benchmark for the industry, providing specialized courses such as Defensive Driving, Incident Avoidance, Progressive Driver Development, DIAmond Advanced Motorists and UAE Familiarisation.

-Ends- 

About Belhasa Driving Center:
Belhasa Driving Center, established on October 13, 2001, is the new name for Dubai Modern Driving Institute, which was set up more than a quarter century ago. The driving center, which is a member of the Saif Belhasa Group has witnessed exponential growth in the last few years and today boasts of an impressive fleet of over 600 training cars, 50 heavy duty trucks, 50 buses, 50 motorcycles, 25 light and heavy forklifts, backed by professional and well-trained team of instructors. Today BDC has set new standards in providing training courses for light motor vehicle, motorcycle, heavy vehicles, forklift safety operating, defensive driving and desert driving. In addition, BDC offers specialized courses like Incident Avoidance, Progressive Driver Development, DIAmond Advanced Motorists course, Chauffer course, UAE familiarisation course, Anti car hi-jacking, Surveillance security and pursuit driving courses. BDC has branches in Jumeirah, Al Wasl Club, Jebel Ali, Port Rashid, Karama, Al Qusais, Lamcy Plaza, Deira, Al Aweer and Century Mall, all of which have extensive shuttle transportation services to ferry students from their homes or offices.

For participation and further information about the campaign, please contact Haresh Vaswani, Belhasa Driving Center at 04-3245500 / 050-2110601.

For more information, please contact:
CommuniGate Middle East
PO Box 66861, Dubai, UAE
Tel: +971 4 3988134
Fax: +971 4 3988137
Email: info@communigateme.com
Website: www.communigateme.com

© Press Release 2007