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By Chukwuma Umeora
The United Nations, in collaboration with the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) and global media company JCDecaux has launch Nigeria’s version of the “Make a safety statement” campaign, urging Nigerians to adopt safer driving habits and support efforts to reduce road traffic crashes.
The campaign, launched recently in Lagos, brought together major stakeholders in the road safety sector to discuss strategies for achieving the UN Decade of Action on Road Safety.
The United Nations Secretary-General’s Special Envoy for Road Safety, Jean Todt, said the campaign underscores the shared responsibility of all road users to promote safety through simple but lifesaving actions, such as wearing seatbelts, helmets and driving responsibly.
In his words: “This campaign is done in agreement with our partner, JCDecaux, calling for small actions that save many lives, like wearing seatbelts, helmets and driving safely. By late 2026, the campaign will have been shown in 80 countries, and gone around 1000 cities worldwide. It works with leading global personalities in sport, film, fashion and culture.”
Highlighting Africa’s growing road safety challenge, Todt said the continent records over 250,000 road crash deaths annually, accounting for nearly one in four global fatalities. He lamented that, “every number has a name, every statistic has a story, every loss hits many loved ones,” urging African governments to treat the issue as a national emergency.
He noted that Nigeria records about 37,000 road deaths yearly, roughly 100 per day, stressing the need for stronger political backing to support the FRSC’s efforts. “If they don’t get the support from the President, from the Vice President, from each governor of the region, from the health minister, transport minister, police minister and education minister, the situation will remain severe,” he said.
He warned that the economic burden reduces Nigeria’s GDP by about five per cent annually. “There is a strong, clear case for making road safety a national priority in every African country, because crashes affect not only the families, but also the country. Safe mobility powers a prosperous, sustainable future for us all,” he added.
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In his address, Corps Marshal of the FRSC, Shehu Mohammed, reaffirmed Nigeria’s commitment to the UN Decade of Action on Road Safety through the implementation of the Nigeria Road Safety Strategy, which is built on five key pillars, including safer speed, safer roads, safer vehicles, safer road users and effective post-crash care.
According to him, “Today, we have the National Road Safety Advisory Council headed by the Vice President, with the executive council members, including cabinet ministers, six governors representing the six geopolitical zones and agencies responsible for safety and security. This shows how Nigeria has keyed in to really get these crashes reduced by half by the year 2030.”
He urged motorists and the general public to adhere to traffic rules and avoid speeding, overloading, drunk driving, and the use of phones, while driving. “If the citizenry can cultivate this culture of compliance to road safety regulations, it will lead to their safety and the safety of others, and the country would be able to achieve the much-needed reduction of road crashes by 50 per cent by the year 2030,” he said.
Abimbola Ijaniyi, Nigeria Sales Manager of JCDecaux, who represented the Country Manager, Dada Omoniyi, commended the UN envoy for his commitment to road safety.
She said JCDecaux has supported the campaign since 2017 and continues to expand its global reach.
“As we speak, the campaign slogan has been translated into 30 languages. Our goal is to deploy this campaign on all JCDecaux assets in over 80 countries, where we’re present and 1000 cities in the coming months. This campaign underscores how sustainable media can use its power and mass outreach to raise awareness to save lives and to also pass on road safety tips,” she said.
Former international football star, Didier Drogba, who also lent his voice to the campaign, emphasised the importance of personal responsibility in saving lives. “Because road safety is something that kills our population, that kills our kids; I’m sure most of us here have someone that has died from a car or motorcycle accident. As an athlete, and with the platform that we created, I think it is important and my responsibility, as part of the family, to come and spread the message of road safety,” Drogba said.
