The National Road Safety Authority (NRSA) has revealed that about 200 to 300 children die in road crashes annually as a result of not using seat belts or child restraints.
However, the Authority addressing the media disclosed that measures are being taken to curb the annual death toll on major roads.
According to the Acting Director-General of NRSA, David Adonteng, the Authority is promoting the use of child restraint systems in vehicles to safeguard them in case of crashes on the road.
“We have the Road Traffic Act 683, and we also have the Road Traffic Regulations which is the LI 2180 and in the past, we have implemented some of the provisions but not all because it takes time to harness the necessary resources and the technical know-how and skills to be able to implement all provisions. There is one that they have identified related to child restraints and seat belts and I think child restraints in particular have been absent from our laws and regulations” Mr. Adonteng noted.
“I am not surprised and if you look at the statistics, we are seeing some negative consequences. Between 200 and 300 children die on our roads annually as a result of not using seat belts or child restraints. This is a significant problem that we need to address” he added.
The pledge to tackle the rate of child death in road accidents by NRSA was made during an advocacy workshop organized in partnership with the Law and Development Associates (LADA) in Accra.
The Acting Director-General of NRSA further explained that the delay of the legal regulations of the process is due to inadequate resources and loopholes in the enforcement of traffic regulations.