The 2nd edition of the Road Safety Journalism Workshop was held in the conference room of the Dhaka North City Corporation on Sunday.
Bloomberg Philanthropies Initiative for Global Road Safety, a multi-country programme that aims to reduce road crash fatalities and injuries, organised the workshop in collaboration with the DNCC and Vital Strategies.
A total of 25 journalists from various national media outlets took part in the workshop.
The workshop focused on various issues relating to road safety, including safe systems, risk factors, and vulnerable road users.
Addressing the closing ceremony of the workshop as chief guest, Dhaka North City mayor Atiqul Islam highlighted the urgent need for action to reduce and prevent road crashes to ensure road safety in the Dhaka city as well as in Bangladesh.
Atiqul stressed the importance of technology and artificial intelligence-based solutions to ensure road safety.
鈥楾he DNCC is ready to utilise AI-based technology in our area. Therefore, we need support and enforcement by the other stakeholders of this area. We are working for a smart Bangladesh,鈥� he said, posing a question as to why smart technology will not be used in road safety and road traffic management.
BIGRS communication officer Khaleda Jasmin Methela moderated the workshop where World Health Organisation Bangladesh Non-communicable diseases national professional officer聽 Syed Mahfuzul Huq, Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology鈥檚 Accident Research Institute associate professors SM Sohel Mahmud, Asif Raihan, Johns Hopkins International Injury Research Unit research associate Shirin Wadhaniya,聽 World Resources Institute consultant Farzana Islam Toma, and Vital Startegies technical adviser Aminul Islam Sujon facilitated various sessions.
DNCC secretary Masud Alam Siddique inaugurated the workshop where BIGRS initiative coordinator Abdul Wadud gave the welcome speech.