UAE roads among world's most dangerous
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The UAE has the most dangerous roads in the GCC and the ninth most dangerous in the world, according to a report by the World Health Organisation. The Global Status Report of Road Safety uses data from countries around the world to compile an indication of how many deaths are caused by traffic each year. The UAE had recorded road deaths in 2007 of 1,056, equal to 37.1 deaths per 100,000 population. The next worst regionally was Saudi Arabia with 6,358 traffic fatalities in total, or 29 deaths per 100,000. Bahrain was the safest country in the GCC, with 12.1 deaths per 100,000. The only countries with worse records than the UAE were Afghanistan, Angola, Cook Islands, Egypt, Eritrea, Iraq, Libya and Niger. Some 1.2 million people die on the world’s roads every year. Almost half of those are pedestrians, cyclists or motorcyclists. Dr Margaret Chan, the WHO’s director general, said road safety “deserves our highest attention” and called on officials around the world to take action. The report looked into various factors within road safety, including laws and enforcement. COUNTRY PROFILES Bahrain 91 reported fatalities in 2007 - 29% pedestrians, 59% car occupants
