The Executive Director of the National Road Safety Commission, May Obiri Yeboah has revealed, road accidents alone cost Ghana 1.6% of her GDP annually.
[contextly_sidebar id=”6xUnBtX5Z4qrGu6nSh8ARt2ll3luCWuP”]This translates to about 2,000 deaths on the average per year.
Almost 60% of crash victims are within the productive bracket of 18-55 years. This situation impacts our economy negatively and estimated to cost 1.6% of our GDP annually,” May Obiri Yeboah said.
According to her, the level of negative impact caused by road traffic crashes was higher than that of crimes and HIV/AIDS annually.
She was speaking at the Launch of the 5th edition of the National Road Safety Awards.
“Road Traffic crashes are responsible for an average of 2000 deaths per year. This situation is far more than deaths recorded through deaths or HIV AIDS yearly. Nearly 33% of these deaths are passenger and cargo vehicles related.”
According to her, the awards scheduled for 13th November this year, has been repackaged to meet new trends in the road safety sector.
The award categories include: Best Road Safety-Oriented Basic School, Youth Ambassador for Road Safety Awards, Best Driver Awards, Best Commercial Passenger Transport Organization Awards, Best Haulage Transport Company Award, as well as Best Road Safety Journalist Award.
The award, which was initiated in 2009, enables the Commission to celebrate institutions and individuals whose contributions continue to impact on road safety positively in the country.
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BY: Duke Mensah Opoku/citifmonline.com/Ghana