Awareness · Road safety
Road Ready
Goats at dusk, gravel, NaTIS and the MVA Fund. Pick the safe move.
Ten situations from a set of forty. Pick an answer, then see why. No timer.
How the road system works
Who does what on Namibia's roads. General info only, rules and fees change.
NaTIS and the Roads Authority
NaTIS is the traffic information system run by the Roads Authority. It holds the records for driving licences, learner's licences, vehicle registration and annual vehicle licences, and it links to the driving test centres.
- Renew a vehicle licence or book a test through the NaTIS Online portal, or at a NaTIS office. Type the address yourself rather than trust a link in a message.
- Vehicle licences are renewed every year. Keep your papers in order and display your disc.
- A driving licence that has been expired for over a year may need an affidavit when you renew.
- Tell NaTIS when you sell a vehicle so fines and liabilities do not stay in your name.
The MVA Fund
The Motor Vehicle Accident (MVA) Fund helps people injured in road crashes, and the families of people killed. You do not buy it: it is paid for from money collected on fuel.
- What it covers: treatment, rehabilitation, lost income, support for dependants and funeral benefits. It does not repair your car.
- How it works: after a crash an ambulance is sent, the Fund opens a reference number, a case manager visits and gives you a claim form, and after you are discharged you submit it.
- Time limits: the law sets strict deadlines for claims, so start early.
- Limits: drivers who were unlicensed or drunk can lose benefits, and at-fault drivers may only receive non-cash help.
- Scams: never pay a stranger to "speed up" a claim. Use the Fund's official contacts.
The Road Fund and the fuel levy
The Road Fund Administration collects road user charges: the fuel levy, vehicle registration and licence fees, and charges on heavy and foreign vehicles. The money goes to the road sector.
- The fuel levy is charged on every litre of petrol and diesel, and it is already included in the pump price.
- It follows a user-pays idea: more fuel, more contribution.
- It funds building and maintaining roads, road safety and traffic law enforcement.
- Farming, mining, construction and fishing users can claim back levy for fuel used off public roads.
Rules worth knowing
- Default speed limits: 60 km/h in urban areas, and 120 km/h on tarred open roads. Limits are maximums, not targets.
- Seatbelts: required for front and rear occupants.
- Helmets: motorcycle riders and passengers must wear a fastened helmet.
- Drink and drugs: the safest amount before driving is none.
- Crash: stop, help, swap details and report it as the law requires.
Crash and paperwork drill
Three short scenarios: a small bump, a serious crash and an expired vehicle licence. Tap the steps in the right order.
- Scenario 1/3
- Stars 0
- This one 3 left
Your order
Tap the next step
Drill complete
0
Stopping distance explorer
Slide the speed and pick a surface. These are estimates: they use a 1.5 second reaction time and typical tyre grip, so real distances vary with your car, tyres and brakes.
Reaction about 0 m Braking about 0 m
Total stopping distance: about 0 m
- Question 1/10
- Score 0
Round complete
0
- Slow down early. Speed decides how far you need to stop and how badly a crash hurts.
- Give yourself space. Leave a big gap, more in rain, and never overtake without a clear view.
- Full attention. No phone, no alcohol and stop for a rest when you are tired.
- Everyone buckles up. Seatbelts for every passenger and a proper child seat for small children.
The Motor Vehicle Accident Fund has said that around 72% of crashes in Namibia are caused by human error, so most are down to choices like these. Source: The Namibian.
Made by Phellep Shapopi