THE NSRI recently issued a call to action to the Basic Education Department to include water safety, swimming and first aid lessons as part of the school curriculum, following the United Nations’ resolution on drowning prevention.
The resolution, which was passed by the UN General Assembly on April 28 this year, establishes drowning as an important international issue and sets out the actions that every country should take to prevent drowning, also calling for a coordinated UN approach to drowning prevention.
Importantly, it also commits the South African government to take actions to prevent drowning.
According to a media statement released by the NSRI, each year in South Africa there are approximately 1 500 fatal drownings of which 450 are children.
“Drowning is a leading cause of child mortality with about a third of the fatal drownings being children under the age of 14. On average, more than one child drowns every day,” the statement read. The vast majority of these deaths could and should have been prevented.
“Schools play a pivotal role in preventing drowning through water safety and education, yet many schools across South Africa do not teach basic water safety skills,” the statement read further.
The NSRI, after the first United Nations World Drowning Prevention Day, on July 25, 2021, is calling on the national minister of basic education and the nine provincial MECs for education to take active steps in ensuring that water safety is included in the life orientation curriculum, a step that could save hundreds of children’s lives every year.
The United Nations General Assembly stressed that drowning is preventable, using low-cost interventions, and encourages nations to appoint a national focal point for drowning prevention, develop countrywide prevention programmes and enact and enforce water safety laws.
According to the United Nations, the world’s highest drowning rates are in Africa while the highest number of drowning deaths are in Asia.
“Drowning is a social equity issue that disproportionately affects children and adolescents in rural areas, with many countries reporting drowning as the leading cause of childhood mortality and drowning being among the ten leading causes of death globally for five to 14-year-olds,” the resolution said.
South Africa accounts for a significant proportion of drowning deaths worldwide, with more than a third occurring among children who are less than 14 years of age.
“Drowning deaths in this age group have been reported to be higher in rural areas than urban and this may be due to the high number of open areas of water in and near rural communities, including lakes and rivers. Thousands of children in South Africa have to cross lakes and rivers just to get to school every day,” the statement read.
“The unprecedented number of drowning incidents is a call for action to the South African government to make a national water safety education programme for children an urgent priority,” said NSRI director of drowning prevention, Jill Fortuin.
“The entire responsibility lies on parents and caregivers to ensure that children are safe around water, but the reality is that for many families, swimming lessons and water safety education are not accessible due to cost, locality and lack of education,” Fortuin added.
“The NSRI is doing everything possible to reduce the number of drownings in South Africa through drowning prevention measures. No parent should have to lose a child, especially to an incident that is entirely preventable,” she said.
“The NSRI is calling on all South Africans, in particular parents and caregivers, to sign this submission as a call to action to hold the South African government and Education Department accountable for their role in (failing to prevent) these preventable deaths.”
