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AMA, NRSA, BIGRS mark World Day of Remembrance for road crash victims
The Accra Metropolitan Assembly, in collaboration with the National Road Safety Authority (NRSA) and the Bloomberg Philanthropies Initiative for Global Road Safety (BIGRS), has commemorated the World Day of Remembrance for Road Crash Victims.
This year’s event, held under the theme “Lost Talents,” sought to, among other things, honour those who have died on the roads, support bereaved families, and renew calls for stronger action to save lives.
The theme highlights that when people are killed or severely injured in road crashes, society loses not only their presence but also their ideas, potential, and future contributions.
Representing the Director-General of the NRSA, Martin Afram said the day offers Ghana an important opportunity to reflect on the human cost of road crashes.
He revealed that road fatalities had increased by 20 percent between January and September 2025 compared to the same period last year. As of September, Ghana had recorded 2,180 deaths and over 12,000 serious injuries.
Mr. Afram stressed that Ghana continues to lose about eight lives every day to road crashes, describing the numbers as real people, family members, colleagues, and friends whose memories must inspire urgent action.
He added that road crashes remain one of the world’s major health challenges, contributing to about 1.3 million deaths and up to 50 million injuries annually, with Africa bearing the highest fatality rate.
He noted that Ghana loses about 1.6 percent of its GDP to road crashes each year and explained that men make up roughly 75 percent of these deaths, leaving many families without breadwinners.
He emphasised that road crashes are preventable because the causes, including speeding, drunk driving, unsafe vehicles, non-use of seatbelts, weak enforcement, and poor road conditions are well known.
Mr. Afram underscored the need for effective post-crash care, including strong ambulance services, trained emergency responders, and ready hospitals.
He added that victims and families also require psychological and legal support, which he described as a basic human right.
He urged religious leaders to continue promoting responsible road behaviour, encouraged drivers to obey speed limits and avoid fatigue, alcohol and distractions, and advised pedestrians to use footbridges and reflective clothing at night.
He also reminded motorcyclists to always wear helmets and obey traffic signals.
The national Chairman of the Alcohol Policy Alliance–Ghana (GhanAPA), Benjamin Anabila, said his organisation has been working since 2018 to reduce alcohol-related harm through policy development and advocacy.
He said GhanAPA has engaged key institutions, including the Ministry of Health, FDA, GHS, the Mental Health Authority, the NRSA and WHO, on the implementation of Ghana’s National Alcohol Policy.
Mr. Anabila added that GhanAPA supported the drafting of the National Alcohol Control Regulations and continues to advocate for their passage.
He said the World Day of Remembrance is not only a moment to mourn but also a call to act, noting that 1,937 people were killed and 10,957 injured in 9,626 crashes in the first eight months of 2025.
He explained that alcohol accounts for an estimated 27 percent of global road traffic injuries and stressed that alcohol-impaired driving remains a major preventable cause of crashes in Ghana.
He called for Ghana’s blood alcohol concentration limit to be reduced from 0.08 to 0.02 and urged Parliament to speed up the passage of the Draft Alcohol Control Regulations.
Mr. Anabila emphasised that every life and every journey matter, and preventable deaths must strengthen Ghana’s resolve to act.
By: Jacob Aggrey
Mr. Alfred Nii Kotey Ashie, the Member of Parliament for the Odododiodioo Constituency in the Greater Accra Region, has assured the Accra Street Academy of his support in achieving its mission of uplifting vulnerable children within the community to break the cycle of poverty. “Without the needed support, your efforts may go round in circles due to the enormity of the task. This should not be left on the shoulders of the Academy alone. You need support from both government and the private sector. With that, the Academy would be in a good position to shape the future of these children on the streets,” he said.
The Accra Street Academy, originally formed in 1985 as a boxing arena, now serves as a school for deprived children, with most of its population numbering hundreds of pupils being neglected children from the streets of Jamestown and its environs. Mr. Alfred Nii Kotey Ashie made these remarks at the annual stakeholders’ meeting and fundraising event held over the weekend under the theme “Empowering Street Children: Health and Wellness.” The event is one of the Academy’s annual programmes, organized to raise funds and other forms of support to aid the school in catering to the needs of the children and holding its Christmas get-together.
According to the MP, it is worth noting that these children are taught and provided with two meals and a snack daily through the support of benevolent members of society. In view of this, he promised to facilitate the acquisition of documents needed for the construction of an Astroturf within the school’s premises. He noted that “every child has the right to play, and therefore I pledged to do my best to secure the needed documents” for the project to commence.
The legislator disclosed that over the years, the academic programmes of the Accra Street Academy have transformed children surviving on the streets into successful adults. He therefore urged other members of society to partner with the school to “help pupils rise higher for a better Ghana.” In the 2025/26 academic year, 22 pupils were absorbed by the Accra Metro Education Directorate as they transitioned into various Junior High Schools, while still returning to the Accra Street Academy for academic support.
Ms. Yvonne Abba-Opoku, a chartered governance advisor and senior executive in the nonprofit and charity sector, stated that the best gift to give a child was education.
By Spectator Reporter
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Mrs Regina Kudom, Senior Midwifery Officer at the New Atuabo Health Centre in the Tarkwa Nsuaem Municipality, has urged expectant mothers to attend antenatal clinic regularly for safe delivery.
She revealed that “in Tarkwa and its environs many pregnant women prefer staying at prayer camps, we are not against that, you can be there, but when your time is up for your antenatal session make sure you attend.”
Mrs Kudom gave the advice when the Gold Fields Ghana Foundation (GFGF) observed the World Prematurity Day with pregnant women at New Atuabo, Huniso and Awudua health centres.
World Prematurity Day falls on November 17, every year, and it is celebrated to raise awareness about the challenges faced by pre-term babies and their families.
She said research suggested that sex during pregnancy could soften the cervix and potentially aid in labour preparation.
“That is the reason why we encourage pregnant women to have sex with their partners, if they do not have any health implications,” she added.
Mrs Kudom appealed to the GFGF to upgrade the New Atuabo health centre as the current structure was too small because they received many patients daily.
Madam Ayishetu Mohammed, Project Coordinator for GFGF, explained that they received donations from Project C. U. R. E and the items were given to health facilities in their operational area.
She stated that they noticed there were baby dresses, sanitary pads, and baby apparel, so they decided to distribute them among expectant mothers in three of their host communities.
Madam Mohammed said because the foundation was interested in preventive care, they brought a midwife from the Tarkwa Mine hospital to educate the pregnant women.
She extolled the midwives in New Atuabo health centre for the education they gave to the pregnant women and implored them to heed to the advice given during antenatal visits to reduce maternal deaths in the Tarkwa Nsuaem and Prestea Huni-Valley Municipalities.
Mr Paa Kwasi Egan, Deputy Chief Physician Assistance, emphasised that a pregnant woman being anemic meant she was not eating a balance diet, and added that, “Some of these women do not have money to buy food or visit antenatal clinics.”
He said when men follow their wives for antenatal visits, they would be educated extensively on why they should provide funds for their pregnant wives.
Mr Egan, therefore, encouraged all men to be involved in their pregnant wives’ antenatal care appointments so they could learn more about pregnancy, childbirth, and parenting. – GNA
