Kenyan police to beef up security to enhance road safety

Kenyan police said on Monday that some 200 officers will be deployed to help the country's national transport agency reduce road deaths.

About 3,000 people lost their lives on the roads in Kenya in 2015, according to the the National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA).

"We are making all efforts to ensure that reckless driving and impunity has been reduced considerably on the Kenyan roads with a view to reducing rampant road accidents being experienced," said Inspector General of Police, Joseph Boinnet, as he signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the NTSA.

Boinnet said the MOU will help ensure a safe transport system and proper enforcement of traffic laws in the country.

He said the officers to be deployed to the NTSA will go through "rigorous vetting" to ensure they are of "high integrity and moral standing".

The officers will be responsible for checking speeding, drunk driving and enforcement of NTSA Act, besides giving instant fines for minor offences.

NTSA Director General, Francis Meja, said road safety had become a serious concern not only to the government but also the general public in Kenya, as 85 percent of the accidents were attributed to human error.

"None of us is safe as long as we have drunk and reckless drivers on our roads," he said, adding that impunity will not be tolerated. Endit