THE Traffic Rules Enforcement Supervisory Committee is seeking to promote road safety in Yangon by educating students about traffic and pedestrian rules, Major General Myint Swe, the chair of the Yangon Division Peace and Development Council, said last week.

“We are also working to control traffic, especially during school hours, in an effort to reduce the number of accidents involving students,” said Major General Myint Swe, who also is the Commander of the Yangon Command.

He said 1249 traffic accidents were reported in Yangon in 2003, resulting in 189 fatalities and 2270 injuries. Of these, 10 of the fatalities and 82 of the injuries were suffered by children.

As of the end of August, this year has seen 821 accidents, 110 fatalities and 1423 casualties. Children accounted for nine of the fatalities and 48 of the injuries.

Major General Myint Swe was speaking on September 29 at a ceremony held at the Road Transport Administration Department’s headquarters in Thingangyan township to donate traffic rule textbooks to area schools.

He handed books for 2918 primary, middle and high schools in Yangon Division’s 45 townships to U Aye Kyu, the director general of the Department of Basic Education (3).

Six textbooks and a teaching guide will be provided to each primary school, 12 textbooks and two teaching guides to each middle school, and 18 textbooks and three teaching guides to each high school.

The books will be used to teach road safety in government schools as part of an education campaign aimed at reducing road accidents.

Major-General Myint Swe said the textbooks and teaching guides were introduced on September 13 to coincide with a familiarisation workshop held at the Basic Education High School (2) in Latha township.

He said the workshop attracted more than 300 primary, middle and high school teachers, as well as township education officers and the heads of the schools.

Teachers who attended the first workshop led follow-up seminars in their respective townships on September 27 to introduce the book to their colleagues, he said.

Major-General Myint Swe said the committee was also planning to conduct a similar workshop in Mandalay and would distribute the books to government schools in Mandalay Division’s seven townships.

There are 205 government schools in Mandalay Division. Major-General Myint Swe said the books would gradually be distributed to government schools throughout the country.