Abu Dhabi: The UAE will join the world on Sunday in remembering road traffic victims and their families as part of the World Remembrance Day for Road Traffic Victims.

This year’s Remembrance Day, which is organised by the World Health Organisation and the United Nations, is being held under the slogan ‘It is time to draw lessons from the past.’

In a statement sent on Saturday by the Ministry of Interior (MoI), Brigadier Gaith Hassan Al Za’abi, director general for the coordination of traffic at the ministry, said: “The occasion calls for collective thinking about the tragedies created by road traffic accidents.”

The official also encouraged efforts to reach out to families of road accident victims. He called on residents to reflect upon the importance of safety on World Remembrance Day. Simple safety measures could avert traffic accidents and resulting tragedies, he said.

He also called upon motorists to abide by traffic regulations, including avoiding speeding and using hands-free devices while driving.

World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims was first celebrated in 1993. Since then it has been observed and promoted worldwide on the third Sunday in November every year as a World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims “as the appropriate acknowledgment for victims of road traffic crashes and their families”.