Accra: Eight people die daily from road crashes in Ghana, with young males comprising the majority of fatalities.
According to Ghana News Agency, the National Road Safety Authority (NRSA) disclosed this information during a media engagement in Accra on the role of advocacy in promoting road safety. Mr. Dennis Yeribu, Principal Planning Manager at the NRSA, reported that from January to June 2025, Ghana recorded 7,289 road crashes involving 12,354 vehicles. These incidents resulted in 1,504 deaths and 8,364 injuries, with 1,301 pedestrians being knocked down.
He highlighted that the 1,504 lives lost in just six months exceeded Ghana's total confirmed COVID-19 fatalities of 1,462 since the pandemic began in March 2020. Mr. Yeribu noted that the last quarter of the year was the deadliest, with crashes peaking from Friday to Sunday between 1800 and 2000 hours, while Wednesdays and early morning hours saw fewer incidents.
Road crash figures have consistently risen from 1991 to 2024. Data from 2018 to 2022 shows that 33 per cent of fatalities were pedestrians, 30 per cent involved motorcycle and tricycle riders, 16 per cent were bus and minibus passengers, and 11 per cent were car occupants. Mr. Yeribu pointed out that 65.7 per cent of deaths involved individuals aged 18 to 45.
He explained that the increase in crashes could be attributed to factors such as inexperience, distraction, overspeeding, improper overtaking, fatigue, loss of vehicle control, tailgating, lack of signalling, and improper turns. Over 90 per cent of collisions were due to human error, and reducing such errors could drastically cut crash rates.
The NRSA's interventions include joint education and enforcement, publicity campaigns, outreach programmes, inspections, and standard enforcement. Mr. Yeribu emphasised that improved education, compliance, collaboration, infrastructure, and funding are critical in reducing crash statistics.
Mrs. Pearl Adusu Sateckla, Public Relations Officer at the NRSA, urged the media to prioritise daily coverage of road safety issues to help reverse the trend.
