The Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) says Nigeria recorded a 12 per cent reduction in road traffic crash fatalities in the first quarter of 2026 compared to the same period in 2025.
Shehu Mohammed, the corps Marshal of the FRSC disclosed this on Friday in Abuja during the commemoration of the 2026 West African Road Safety Organisation (WARSO) Day.
Mohammed, however, described the situation as still troubling within the broader African road safety landscape, noting that although Africa accounts for less than three per cent of the world’s registered vehicles, the continent records more than 20 per cent of global road traffic deaths.
According to him, many of the victims are breadwinners and productive citizens, making the need for stronger road safety interventions across the region more urgent.
He said the establishment of WARSO was aimed at promoting harmonised policies, joint enforcement strategies and the sharing of best practices among member states.
“Nigeria achieved a 12 per cent reduction in road traffic crashes and fatalities in Q1 2026 compared to Q1 2025. Yet, the statistics remain sobering,” he said.
Speaking on the theme of this year’s celebration, “From Ratification to Action; African Road Safety Charter,” Mohammed said African countries must move beyond commitments and implement concrete measures to reduce road deaths.
He added that road traffic crashes remain a major public health and economic challenge globally, with more than 1.5 million deaths and over 70 million injuries recorded annually.
Citing a 2023 report by PricewaterhouseCoopers and the World Bank, the FRSC boss said road crashes account for about seven per cent loss of Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
Mohammed said Nigeria had continued to align its National Road Safety Strategy II (2021–2030) with the African Road Safety Charter through improved data management, public enlightenment campaigns and stronger inter-agency collaboration.
He listed measures introduced by the FRSC to include enforcement of speed limiting devices, deployment of the FRSC mobile app for real-time reporting and capacity building for first responders.
He also disclosed that Nigeria recently launched the African Association of Road Safety Lead Agencies (AARSLA) Office to position the country as the secretariat for lead road safety agencies across Africa.
Representing the federal ministry of transportation, Abubakar El-Nafaty, deputy director called for stronger collaboration among African countries, increased investment in road safety education, stricter enforcement of traffic laws and improved infrastructure.
Also speaking, Clement Oladele, FRSC deputy corps marshal in charge of planning, research and statistics urged policymakers to integrate the African road safety charter into national laws and budgets.
Oladele also appealed to civil society organisations, the private sector and road users to support efforts aimed at reducing crashes and promoting safer road use across the continent.
He expressed optimism that Africa could achieve the United Nations target of reducing road traffic deaths by 50 per cent by 2030 through sustained collaboration and enforcement efforts.