More than 30,000 children reached since 2025; Zambia Police confirm over 2,500 road deaths last year; RTSA warns more children are dying on the school run.
LUSAKA, ZAMBIA Saturday, 20th June, 2026. The Zambia Road Safety Trust (ZRST) today launched the Replication Phase of its Safer Journeys to School Initiative at Chelstone Secondary School, expanding the programme to 15 schools and more than 24,000 learners across Lusaka, in partnership with Yango Zambia.
The launch was attended by a representative of the, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development, who served as Guest of Honour, alongside representatives of the Ministry of Transport and Logistics, PS, the Ministry of Education, the Road Transport and Safety Agency (RTSA), and the Zambia Police Service.
The initiative began in 2025 as a pilot in five schools Arthur Wina Primary, New Mandevu Primary, Mumuni Primary, Twashuka Primary and Chilenje South Secondary reaching approximately 8,000 learners through zebra crossings, speed humps, road signage, school-zone markings and road safety education. Combined with this year’s expansion, ZRST and Yango Zambia have now reached more than 30,000 children since the programme began.
“Yango is happy to continue this partnership with ZRST,” said Ms. Kabanda Chalwe, Country Manager, Yango Zambia. “Having reached over 30,000 children through this programme, we see ourselves as part of the ecosystem of transport in Zambia, and we believe the private sector has a responsibility to be part of the solution, not just a presence on the road.”
A representative of the Ministry of Transport and Logistics welcomed the programme’s growth, noting that ZRST’s work supplements government efforts to improve road safety around schools and confirming that the government is happy to see the work scaled further.
The launch came against a backdrop of sobering national figures. The Zambia Police Service confirmed that more than 2,500 people were killed on Zambia’s roads in 2025. Speaking at the event, a representative of the Road Transport and Safety Agency (RTSA) said more children are dying on Zambia’s roads while walking to and from school, a trend the agency said should concern every stakeholder in the room.
“We should not be satisfied because 15 schools have been reached,” said Mr. Daniel Mwamba, CEO/Executive Director of ZRST. “We should be disturbed that many more schools still face the same risk. The numbers the Police and RTSA have shared today are not abstract. They are children, and they are preventable.”
ZRST used the occasion to renew its call for safer school journeys to become standard public policy rather than a pilot project. The organisation is calling for school-zone safety, speed management and child-focused road risk to be treated as permanent infrastructure priorities, planned into road design from the outset rather than added later.
