By Rita Iliya
The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), Minna Operations Office, has launched the 2025 edition of Operation Eagle Eye to reduce road traffic crashes during the yuletide period in Niger.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the operation was inaugurated on Wednesday at the Abdulsalam Garage, Minna, with the theme: “Take Responsibility for Safety: Stop Distracted Driving.”
Hajiya Zubaida Umar, Director-General of NEMA, said the initiative was aimed at enhancing disaster risk reduction, improving response capacity and strengthening collaboration among stakeholders in road safety management.
Umar, represented by the Head of NEMA Minna Operations Office, Malam Hussein Isah, said the operation was designed to create awareness among motorists and the general public to ensure an accident-free festive season.
“This year’s theme focuses on enhancing response capacity and supporting key stakeholders by creating awareness among motorists and the public on safety, especially during the yuletide,” he said.
Isah said the operation would involve monitoring major highways, educating drivers on the causes of road traffic crashes and supporting response agencies, particularly the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), in accident prevention and management.
According to him, the exercise would also ensure preparedness to respond promptly to emergencies in line with international best practices, while complementing the efforts of the Police, Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), Fire Service and other emergency responders.
He expressed concern over rising road crash fatalities, noting that 1,593 Nigerians died in road traffic crashes in the first quarter of 2025, despite a slight reduction in the total number of crashes compared to the same period in 2024.
Isah said fatalities increased by 8.3 per cent and injuries by 7.4 per cent in the first quarter of the year, while the second quarter of 2025 recorded a 9.44 per cent rise in crashes, resulting in 1,245 deaths and 8,520 injuries.
He attributed most accidents to human-induced factors such as speeding, distracted driving, drunk driving, overloading and violation of traffic rules, adding that poor road conditions also contributed to the problem.
In his remarks, Mr Yusuf Mutalib, the FRSC Chief Route Commander in Niger, described NEMA as a critical stakeholder in ensuring road safety at both federal and state levels.
Mutalib said that human factors accounted for more than 80 per cent of road accidents, stressing the need for stakeholders to work together to discourage speeding, wrongful overtaking and overloading during the festive season.
He urged park managers to help disseminate safety information to drivers and advised passengers to speak out whenever drivers engaged in dangerous driving that could endanger lives.
Also speaking, Alhaji Ibrahim Danladi, the Chairman of the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW), Abdulsalam Garage, Minna, said the union regularly sensitised its drivers on safe driving practices
.
Danladi said that the union enforced strict control measures at the park, adding that vehicles were not allowed to overload and any driver found violating the rule was stopped and charged to a mobile court.
Other stakeholders at the event, including the Niger State Fire Service, Nigerian Red Cross Society, Niger State Emergency Management Agency (NSEMA) and NSCDC, called for regular vehicle checks, drug testing of drivers and strict adherence to traffic rules.
NAN reports that Operation Eagle Eye is an annual NEMA initiative carried out during the ember months to address the increased risks of road accidents, fire outbreaks and other disasters associated with festive activities across the country. (NAN)(www.nannews.ng)