The National Traffic Safety Committee (NTSC), in co-operation with the Ministry of Education and Higher Education, yesterday organised a meeting of the principals of Asian schools in the State of Qatar.
The meeting, held at the General Directorate of Traffic headquarters, was aimed at presenting the vision and mission of the NTSC to all concerned — students, teachers, principals and parents.
Addressing the meet, Dr Ebtisam Naji, educational expert at the committee, introduced the NTSC and its role in reducing the number of deaths and injuries resulting from traffic accidents. She pointed to the role of schools in instilling the concepts of traffic safety in students through their curricula and activities.
Dr Naji noted that the NTSC had issued a general educational curriculum for traffic safety, which was launched and distributed among all schools in Arabic and English in 2013. A guide has been published on pedestrian safety for children from KG level to the third grade.
The meeting emphasised the role of schools in maintaining the safety of its students and protecting them from traffic accidents near the school as well as the responsibility of every principal to ensure the availability of traffic signs and speed bumps on school premises along with the allocation of safe pedestrian paths for students, the Ministry of Interior said in a statement.
Dr Naji also pointed to the importance of adherence to safety conditions on buses, in terms of the number and age of students and the availability of safety belts for each student.
She stressed the importance of encouraging schools to participate in activities such as the Traffic Week, dedicating a day to traffic safety at the school, organising exhibitions that encourage students to draw and highlight the issue of traffic safety in a way that is more creative.
Dr Ebtisam Naji speaking at the event.
