The Mayor Councillor for Malawi’s Lilongwe City, Richard Banda, has signed the International Walking Charter to ensure the city becomes more mobility-friendly and conducive to pedestrians and cyclists.
Development Diaries reports that Banda signed the charter during the commemoration of the seventh UN Global Road Safety Week organised by the Road Safety Alert Foundation (ROSAF).
The International Charter for Walking is a common policy reference that cities, organisations, neighbourhood groups and individuals can sign up for and encourage more everyday walking and greater walkability in communities.
Banda said at the ceremony that walking and cycling as well as using public transport would help to decongest Lilongwe city, while the healthy benefit of keeping the city residents strong and reducing carbon emissions from vehicles will be beneficial to the city,
‘I feel honoured to join the Road Safety Alert Foundation (ROSAF) and the rest of the world to commemorate the seventh UN Global Road Safety Week and sign the International Charter for Walking to register my commitment and the commitment of the Lilongwe city that we will promote walking and cycling in Malawi’s capital city, Lilongwe’, Nyasa Times quoted Banda as saying.
According to him, the city will make sure that all roads currently under construction will be safe and inclusive as segregated pathways for pedestrians and cycleways for cyclists are built alongside the construction.
For his part, the Lilongwe City Council Chief Executive Officer, McCloud Kadan’manja said it was time the city contributed to a conducive environment for walking and cycling to promote safer roads for all users.
Kadan’manja added that existing road networks will be redesigned to include pedestrian walkways and cycleways for cyclists.
Photo source: Alan
