Syria, like many countries, is trying very hard to reduce its level of road traffic accidents. As part of this important effort, in 2003 Shell Syria began implementing a trial exercise to spread road safety messages to school children in Deir Ezzor. From what was originally a series of voluntary presentations, Shell Syria’s road safety programme quickly grew and expanded. It now includes Damascus and Palmyra and has become a major project within Shell Syria’s social investment plan, supporting the local community.

10 year old Samer is one of Syria’s road traffic accident victims. Fortunately for him, he survived and has recovered from the physical impact of his accident but he now knows, only too well, the importance of road safety.

Leaving his house one morning in Al-Mayadin village in Deir Ezzor governorate, on his way to school Samer was hit by a car. As he set off that morning on his short journey to school he had no idea that was about to be hit by a car unable to stop in time due to its high speed or that he would break his right leg and receive a significant wound to the right side of his forehead. He also had no idea that he wouldn’t make it to school that day and that it would actually be a whole month before he was well enough to see his friends again.

Taking part in Shell’s Road Safety Programme at his school, following the accident, Samer said “I am so happy to have been taught all this valuable information about traffic safety. I know I’ll be able to use this information and knowledge every day of my life and will try to pass the information on to my friends and family. I shall never forget to look to the left and right before I cross the street! This and the other information I have been taught will remain as deeply inscribed in my mind as this wound is in my forehead following my accident.”

Encouragingly, it seems that Samer is not the only one heeding the advice and information being taught to the elementary children about road safety. According to remarks of the concerned governmental parties in Deir Ezzor, the Shell programme – having increased the children’s awareness of the Road safety standards and traffic rules for drivers and pedestrians – has led to a decreased rate of accidents recorded amongst children in the region.

Concentrating on fifth grade students the programme involves a qualified teacher visiting governmental and private schools to present information on road safety using age appropriate educational aids and videos. Participants in the programme are also given a school bag as a gift from Shell Syria and a booklet to keep which contains valuable information on the importance of knowing and following road rules. This booklet not only provides pupils with a reminder of road rules in their day-to-day life but is also something they can take home, to share with friends and families, to extend the reach of the road safety message.

Speaking about the programme and its success to date, Shell Syria’s Country Chair, Graham Henley said: “We are proud to be the pioneer of this important educational programme in Syria. We currently make presentations to 230 schools per year in Deir Ezzor, Damascus and Palmyra and to date some 65000 pupils have taken part in and benefited from the programme since it first began, back in 2003. Furthermore, based upon support extended by the Ministry of Education, on 2005 we have added a number of other important topics into the programme including healthcare, cleanliness, protection of the environment and preserving energy.”

In his view of the Program, Der Ezzor Director of Education Dr. Rami Al-Delli points out that the importance of this Programme lies in the fact that it focuses on raising student awareness of traffic safety and environmental principles and rules at an early age.

 
He underlines that implementing the Programme in Der Ezzor schools for the seventh year running has proven to be successful and this is verified by the reports that show decline in traffic accidents, particularly at the schools that are located near the main roads, such as Der Ezzor-al-Bukamal, al-Bassira, al-Tabni and al-Kasra roads. In the past, these roads witnessed numerous tragic traffic accidents and students of nearby schools were unfortunately the victims.

 
Dr. Delli adds that the importance of this Programme is also manifested in the kit distributed on students, such as the bag that holds a light reflector that helps drivers see the students from a long distance, particularly during the harsh weather conditions in the governorate, such as the dust storms or “AJAJ” as it is called by locals. This kit also contains road safety awareness booklets that teach students how to cross the road and explains what each traffic light signifies.

 
The Programme is also very useful since it employs modern audio and visual teaching aids, not to mention the skilfulness and efficiency of the expert in conveying the intended ideas to students.

 
The Programme has succeeded in transforming the state of indifference previously predominant amongst students while leaving school. Students used to come out of school running carelessly toward the street without any consideration of the repercussions of such manner. The Programme completes the work carried out by the Baath Vanguards Organization, which also involves traffic awareness-raising, Dr Delli says.
He also says that the information provided by the Programme on environment protection and hygiene is not less important than traffic awareness. Students are educated about personal hygiene and the importance of having clean classroom, clean school, clean home, clean street and clean neighbourhood. The Programme teaches students not to draw on walls and keep the school yard, toilets and furniture clean. This has created a sense of awareness and responsibility toward the environment and toward general hygiene. The Programme has already produced tangible results reflected in more clean schools in rural areas, (which mostly suffer from janitor shortage) where students cooperate with janitors to keep schools clean. We have also received a lot of letters of praise from parents whose children have taken part in the Programme, saying that the information given to their children has reflected in better behaviour at home in terms of cleanliness, tidiness .

 
The Principal expressed his readiness to maintain cooperation with the Programme to achieve the desired goals which are harmonious with the objectives of the education authorities, hoping to broaden the scope of Programme to include raising teacher awareness of traffic safety and environmental principles and devise a method to convey this awareness to students to create an integrated, unbroken and enduring chain in the field of student awareness of traffic safety and environmental principles.

 
Ms. Sawsan Fannoush, principal of Fatima Al Zahraa School for basic education in Der Ezzor, talks about her experience with the Programme: “Implementation of the Programme in our school started seven years ago and the experiment has been a glittering success. The lovable technique employed by trainer Nahed Sheikh Attiah with students, the teaching aids used to deliver every piece of information and the practical application of information received by students through the Program have all contributed in achieving the Programme goals. In addition, the continuous communication with the school social worker, classroom counselor and administration has also contributed to the continuity and sustainability of the Programme.”
Mr. Ass’ad Hassoun, principal of Hawi Jazeera School (affiliated to al-Kasra district), spoke about his experience by saying: “The Programme in our school is seven years old now and it is a very successful experiment and an indispensable need, given that the school is located on the main road and this poses huge danger to students and given that our school suffered from many tragic traffic accidents in the past. Raising student awareness of the importance of hygiene and environment protection has also helped us as a rural school that has only one janitor to build a network of cooperation to keep the school clean and tidy. We hope the Programme and Shell to intensify their driver-awareness raising campaigns because some drivers do not observe speed limits and traffic rules near schools”.

Mr. Graham Henley, the General Manager of Shell Syria, says: “We attach the greater importance to safety and we are happy with the positive impact of this Programme on children and parents, and of course on educational staff. This Programme comes in the framework of integrated activities in the field of road safety carried out by Shell in Syria, through which we hope to reduce road accident and decrease fatalities and injuries. We wish to thank those who have worked with us to promote the Programme, particularly the Ministry of Education and the directorates of education”.