This archive report was first published on 3 October 2019.
October 3, 2019, marked a significant shift in the Kenyan government's approach to road safety as President Kenyatta ordered the National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA) to return to the country's roads.
This decision comes nine months after the President withdrew NTSA officers from Kenyan roads and handed over their duties to traffic police.
According to data from NTSA, road accidents have claimed the lives of 2,326 people in the past 12 months, representing a 15% increase from the previous year.
As part of the new directive, NTSA officials will focus on guiding traffic police on traffic offenses and malpractices, while leaving enforcement work to the police.
‘Our job will only be to guide the police on the offenses and traffic malpractices to look out for. We cannot arrest or order a vehicle to stop. NTSA is only there to support,’ an NTSA official stated anonymously.
The move is seen as an attempt to address the corruption and impunity allegations that had plagued NTSA's enforcement of its duties, leading to President Kenyatta's initial decision to withdraw them in January this year.
