The wail of the ambulance fades, but the silence that follows? Deafening. It’s the silence of children left fatherless, mothers burying their sons, and wives staring at empty chairs.
In just nine months from January to August 2025, 1,937 lives have been lost in road crashes across Ghana.
That’s more than eight people every day, ripped from their families and their futures.
But while the death toll is staggering, an even more alarming pattern is hiding in plain sight.
According to shocking new statistics from the National Road Safety Authority (NRSA), four out of every five people who die on Ghana’s roads are men. Yes, you read that right.
Men account for 79% of road fatalities. Women? 21%.
That’s a 4;1 gender death gap, and it’s no coincidence. It’s a brutal, recurring reality that’s been consistent year after year, but largely ignored.
The gender gap in the graveyard
Why are so many more men dying? According to road safety analysts, the reason lies not in biology but in behaviour and exposure.
Men make up the overwhelming majority of drivers, commercial transport operators, and motorcycle riders. They are more likely to speed, drive under stress, flout road traffic regulations, and take risks behind the wheel.
But the cost is evident: funerals instead of family dinners, coffins instead of commutes.
VEHICLES OF DEATH: WHAT’S KILLING US?
When it comes to the types of vehicles most involved in deadly crashes, the breakdown for the first half of 2025 is as follows:
• Private Vehicles: 41%
• Commercial Vehicles: 34%
• Motorcycles: 25%
But here’s the most chilling part: motorcycle-related crashes have surged by a jaw-dropping 21% compared to the same period in 2024.
Motorbikes, often used as a cheaper, faster alternative in congested cities and rural areas, have become deadly machines.
Riders are frequently untrained, unlicensed, or simply reckless. And the passengers? Often, without helmets, safety, or any chance of survival.
Regional hotspots: Where blood flows most
If Ghana’s roads were battlefields, these are the most dangerous war zones:
1. Ashanti region: The deadliest of them all
• 3,710 crashes
• 479 deaths in nine months — 60 more deaths than 2024
2. Greater Accra – A city under siege
• 3,004 crashes
• 264 deaths
• Crashes are up, though deaths are slightly down, but still high
3. Eastern region: Fewer crashes, more crashes
• 1,360 crashes
• 405 deaths
Compare that to Greater Accra’s 10 deaths per 100 crashes — and you begin to see a disturbing truth: crashes in the Eastern Region are far more lethal.
Voices from the road: Drivers speak out
Many drivers in the Asante Region — where the most lives are lost — point to poor road conditions, police negligence, lawless overtaking, and overloaded commercial vehicles.
In Greater Accra, drivers cite congestion, impatience, and lack of enforcement.
But all agree: the roads are chaotic, dangerous, and often deadly — not just due to infrastructure, but because of human error and indiscipline.
“THE CARNAGE MUST STOP” — AUTHORITIES SPEAK
Simbiat Wiredu, Corporate Affairs Manager at NRSA, attributed the crash surge to a mix of:
• Overspeeding
• Wrongful overtaking
• Distracted driving
• Lack of maintenance on vehicles
• Poor road-user attitudes
Meanwhile, Chief Superintendent Alexander Obeng, in charge of Research and Monitoring at the Ghana Police Service, told Adom News that enforcement alone isn’t enough.
“We need a national mindset change. Education, enforcement, engineering — they must all come together.”
ACT NOW — OR MORE WILL DIE
The writing is on the wall — and on the tarmac in blood.
Ghana’s roads have become death traps. Every crash is more than a number; it’s a life lost, a family destroyed, a future cut short.
This is not just a transportation issue. This is a national emergency.
Until there is urgent action, the deadly gender gap will persist. The fatalities will rise. And the silence of the morgues will keep growing louder than the horns on our highways.
Have you lost someone to a road crash?
Please share your story in the comments below or tag us on social media with #GhanaRoadTruth
QUICK FACTS:
• 1,937 deaths (Jan–August 2025)
• 79% male fatalities and Females 21%
• Motorcycle crashes up 21%
• Asante Region: 479 deaths — the highest in Ghana
• Eastern Region: Highest crash-to-death ratio (28 per 100)
Source: Akwasi Agyeman, Editor in Charge of Special Assignments
