Road accidents and their multiple causes in the Cameroonian National Territory

Par malumiereetmonsalut Le 30/08/2024 à 00:00 0

Dossier

Transport bus in poor condition after a traffic accident in Cameroon. Image fr.africanews.com

Defined as one of the “vital sectors of the Cameroonian economy”, the transport sub-sector which belongs to the large services sector which in 2021 represented 51.1% of the gross domestic product (GDP) of Cameroon according to the general management of the French treasury which "defends French positions in competent forums in financial and commercial matters", is not only an employment niche but also an engine of growth which supports the national production of a country which like many others has to face several challenges, particularly road ones, to further optimize its income and in particular its human development index which is a statistical value making it possible to evaluate the rate of human development of a country and which according to the 2021/2022 report of the Program of United Nations for Development (UNDP) was 0.576 points for Cameroon, i.e. 151st rank out of 191 countries. This score, which corresponds to 19th place in Africa, placed the country in the category of countries with an average HDI.

Not a day goes by without hearing that there have been one or more traffic accidents, with or without seriousness, in Cameroon. This global concern in the context of a developing country like Cameroon raises questions whose answers can be found both on the part of road users and the competent authorities who, despite constant efforts to respond even more favourably to the urgent and daily requests from Cameroonians, still have additional efforts to make in a continent where 27.5% of deaths per 100,000 inhabitants are due to road accidents far behind the Americas and Europe where particularly according to the agency African Economic Information (Ecofin), in 2021, the tendency was around 9%. This means, as the World Health Organization believes, African roads are the deadliest.

The causes of road accidents

Thanks to data from experts from the Ministry of Transport and other actors working in the road transport sub-sector without forgetting to mention road users and even the surrounding populations of the disaster sites or not, there is no longer any doubt that traffic accidents are due to three main causes. Firstly human failures, secondly those linked to vehicles, and thirdly the poor state of the roads. Added to these main causes are excessive speed and more particularly speeds during overtaking, drunk driving, driver exhaustion, mechanical problems, non-compliance with technical inspections, increased recklessness when approaching or crossing level crossings (crossings at the same level between a road, a sidewalk, a track or a path and a railway track), the insufficiency and/or non-existence of traffic signs in certain strategic places, wandering animals which obstruct the roadway and even the sidewalks, and finally, among other things, non-compliance with road signs.

The causes are certainly multiple, but we must not place the responsibility for them only on certain people. It is a whole set of distinct actors who, depending on the activity they carry out, all contribute to making the fight against road accidents more difficult to the point where we have the impression that things are not moving forward especially when we lose a loved one while efforts are being made on the ground even if they are still hampered by inadequacies and other deplorable attitudes committed by a group of Cameroonians.

Human causes and road quality

Anything that can contribute to accentuating embezzlement and corruption practices is closely linked to traffic accidents in Cameroon. Indeed, in a context where the concern is to make as much profit as possible by taking all possible risks or by borrowing all possible illegal means, the smartest and richest are those who earn more by taking advantage of embezzlement and corruption having established domiciles on our roads and maintained by law enforcement authorities as well as road prevention and safety agents, customs officers, and town hall agents. Human causes are not only at the level of drivers, some of whom are unfortunately part of these vicious circles.

The responsibility of the government and municipalities for road accidents lies both in human failures and in the poor quality of the roads. In April 2024, transporters in the Douala-Bangui corridor had to denounce abusive practices at the weighbridges (weighing instruments designed to weigh trucks and other vehicles) in Beloko and Bouar. They cited unjustified additional costs and abusive blocking practices. We could say that these are isolated acts which are limited only to border crossings but it is also attitudes of this kind which contribute to accentuating human failures coupled with the poor state of the roads which contribute to accentuating road accidents in Cameroon.

Some roads have deteriorated so much over time that they damage quality vehicles. Already in 2023, carriers and users were complaining about the quality of the national road No. 5 between Douala and Bafoussam which is still in an advanced state of degradation, especially at the Souza-Banga section. And cases that are similar or not, particularly with regard to the extent of the damage, can be observed in all regions of Cameroon. Many asphalt roads have deteriorated over time and require constant rehabilitation due to the creation and multiplication over time of potholes and elephant nests (cavities with reduced and very considerable diameters which extend over several kilometres and denote the advancement of the state of degradation of the road surface or roads over time) which promote not only traffic accidents but also the degradation of vehicles in the sense of a reduction in performance due to repetitive mechanical breakdowns caused by poor road quality. And despite all these constraints, transporters and transport establishments are still obliged to pay constant taxes while vehicles, some of which cost several tens of millions of CFA francs, are constantly deteriorating due to the roads themselves same degraded.

Also read : Development of transports infrastructures in Cameroon : a long and promising process at a speed of a turtle

If we have to talk about human failure and poor road quality, we should start by questioning the deplorable behaviour of certain State agents and even town halls on our roads and even on our urban roads. This should include the government's inability to respond to the problems of carriers in order to provide quality service to both the population and the entire country. Reduced the causes only to the level of the clumsiness of drivers or transporters is to take an even more complicated problem partially because several roads in Cameroon are in poor condition and some people take advantage of this particular situation to line their pockets in an illicit manner.

Corruption is one of the human failings that causes the most deaths on our roads. According to the national anti-corruption commission through its index on the perception of corruption in Cameroon dating from 2017: “the transport sector is undermined by corruption” and it is not the drivers who will say the opposite. In 2019, a trade unionist declared that it is “an activity that is known by everyone in the transport sector in Cameroon (source: voaafrique.com). And the slump extends to the driving license exam. How will an individual who obtained his license illegally contribute to eradicating corruption in a context where you cannot compose and not even be admitted but obtain your driving license? In addition, drivers are stopped in the streets and on the roads just to complete formalities which have nothing to do with the required documents but rather with a pass corresponding to a clumsily concealed sum of money which will enter into the pockets of a group of individuals.

The deterioration of the roads is also the result of non-compliance with specifications by transporters and their allies at weighing stations. Even if it should be noted that the State and the municipalities have difficulty renovating a good number of roads which have deteriorated over the years, users and certain agents of the State and town halls certainly have their share of responsibility on a bitumen expected to degrade over time but especially in the acceleration of this degradation. Indeed, according to an expert opinion, “if an asphalt road is abnormally subjected to truck overloads, its lifespan, initially estimated at around 15 years, will necessarily be shortened. » It is this set of acts of embezzlement among many others coupled with funding problems or insufficient funding to take proper care of the roads that make the fight against road accidents in Cameroon even more difficult but not insurmountable even with small means. Moreover, several efforts have been made to reduce the extent of the problem from within thanks in particular to the efforts of the national anti-corruption commission (CONAC) which, through publications, revelation and recommendations nevertheless contribute to the sanitation of the environment of ministerial departments in Cameroon.

Poor condition of vehicles

Vehicles traveling on degraded roads gradually wear out while increasing the degree of degradation of these roads. One of the characteristics of the Cameroonian landscape is the presence of old vehicles which at first glance one could say can no longer be driven or that they can no longer be useful but which travel hundreds of kilometres every day and at high speed for some on certain roads which require even more effort due to their state of disrepair. And it should come as no surprise that those who drive this type of vehicle do not undergo technical inspections. They carry out their activity by providing a paid service to Cameroonians and even to the Cameroonian State since most of them have the required parts although they often travel without headlights, without rear-view mirrors, without seat belts, without front indicators and/or rear, but with an engine that allows you to do the work you need to do and collect the money you need to satisfy yourself and respond favourably to police harassment, the abuses of which have even been denounced by the corporatist solidarity of these clandestine transporters.

Since the poor condition of vehicles is a problem, we wonder why old vehicles are circulating on our streets and road networks? The reason is simple. Cameroonians are giving themselves the means to seek their means of subsistence in a context of precariousness where they have to work despite everything. It is certainly not the public authorities who are unaware of this. In addition, the African continent is a dumping ground for old vehicles and everyone knows it. Indeed, “outdated with regard to the environmental or safety standards in force in the OECD countries (organization for economic cooperation and development), [old vehicles] find a last outlet in the poorest countries, where only a privileged minority can access a new car and import regulations are undemanding if not non-existent. » (le monde.fr -2020)

It is therefore normal that the project to implement a scrappage bonus has fallen into disuse. Indeed, with roads deteriorating faster than normal due to the pressure of overloaded vehicles and other imported vehicles that are considered out of date from the outside, we are not sure of leaving the hostel since with degraded roads, the acceleration of the aging of these vehicles as well as that of streets and roads is certain.

The road is a means of communication that has never killed anyone. It is human failures that are at the root of these multiple traffic accidents on roads that are mostly more or less paved on the one hand, and mostly landlocked on the other. Users must therefore exercise great caution and, above all, responsibility on roads where, in addition to being responsible for themselves, they also have the responsibility to do their best not to cause the death of their fellow human beings since any wrong move is likely to have a negative impact on others.

Men certainly needs quality infrastructure but he himself must behave honestly in what he does and above all no longer take unnecessary risks on roads where there will certainly always be accidents but where the extent of the damage and even the improvement of the positive margin depends on each citizen, each user both on the roads and in administrations where certain individuals maintain indecent activities which further harden this long fight against road accidents.

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