RTA gifts child car seats to Dubai's newborns

Gulf Today, Staff Reporter

Marking the UAE's 52nd Union Day celebrations, Dubai’s Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) gifted newborn car seats across Dubai hospitals. This gesture was part of RTA's yearly traffic safety initiatives, conducted in collaboration with Dubai Police General HQ, Dubai Health Authority (DHA), UNICEF, and supported by the Emirates General Petroleum Corporation (Emarat) and Continental Tires.

Bader Alsiri, Executive Director of Traffic at Traffic and Roads Agency, RTA reiterated the importance of awareness and community-oriented events undertaken by the Traffic and Roads Agency during national occasions. “RTA capitalises on annual and seasonal occasions to disseminate awareness messages tailored to diverse ages and the community at large.

It is part of RTA’s responsibility to educate the community and minimise fatalities and injuries resulting from traffic incidents,” he noted. “In collaboration with public and private partners, RTA developed an awareness campaign to commemorate Union Day while also serving the objectives of traffic safety by urging parents to install a child seat in vehicles. Launched four years ago, the annual "My Child's Union Day Gift" initiative began by allocating 200 child seats across 17 hospitals.

This year, the number of child seats soared to 450, distributed among 29 Dubai hospitals. This initiative is based on the idea that every child born during the Union Day celebrations (from December 1 to 5) deserves a suitable gift — a child seat. RTA coordinates in advance with DHA and hospitals that have maternity wards to estimate the number of expected births in each hospital.

The allocation of child seats is then tailored to match these estimated birth figures,” explained Alsiri. “RTA had charted out awareness plans for all target groups in Dubai. Awareness teams approach community members starting from newborns, children, students, to adult drivers and road users,” concluded Alsiri.

Saji Thomas, Child Protection Chief at UNICEF Gulf Area Office, commended the My Child's Union Day Gift initiative on Union Day. He highlighted the importance of persistent efforts to elevate community awareness about traffic safety and urged parents to use child seats in vehicles.

Thomas expressed gratitude towards RTA for its dedication to child protection and safety. He reaffirmed UNICEF's commitment to collaborating with the Dubai government and all partners in promoting the culture of children's rights and the role of the community in protecting children and their development within a secure environment.