Cornerstone partners FRSC to safeguard school children against road mishaps

Stories from Ngozi Onyeakusi, Lagos

Cornerstone Insurance Plc. has taken its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) project to schools aimed at educating and protecting them against road mishap.

The firm said it is partnering the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) to achieve the said target.

Speaking during the inauguration of the Safe Route to School Road initiative of the firm in partnership with the FRSC, the General Manager, Cornerstone, Yinka Adeoya stated that “We are turning our attention to an important segment of the society, and that is the school children. The kids are the most vulnerable member of the society and a number of them walk to school every day under challenging circumstances”, she said.

She noted that account available to the company showed that that at least a child is involve in one form of road accident or the other in en-route to schools adding that at least 80 percent of children related casualties can be linked to lack of adequate safety road signs and recklessness of drivers. She assured that all these informed the company’s resolve to embark on the (CSR) campaign. “From today into the next few months, we would be activating scores of schools across Lagos State and the plan is to put in place illuminated safety signs and zebra crossing markings with on the spot safety sensitisation on use of these facilities.

Adekoya said that Cornerstone was concerned about the environment, the community and the constant pursuit of innovative ways to respond to the society’s biggest challenges as part of its corporate social responsibilities.

She further gave assurance that the firm has put in place CSR framework to propel the nascent partnership. “We have developed a sustainable CSR framework that thrives on partnership with broad range of stakeholders to intervene where the need is great and this is in addition to our philanthropic giving as well as social investment in communities”, she said.

Also speaking at the event, The Acting Zonal Commanding Officer, John Meheux, stated that Zone RS2 headquarters, Lagos signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Cornerstone Insurance solely to ensure reduction in traffic crashes and its attendant fatality as articulated in the FRSC corporate strategic goal 2013 which was to reduce road traffic crashes by 20 per cent and road traffic fatality by 30 per cent.