The Law and Development Associates (LADA) Institute has called for legislative changes regarding child restraints and seatbelt usage in vehicles.
On June 27, 2024, the institute held an advocacy workshop in Accra, themed “Securing Our Future: Making a Case for Legislative Strengthening of Mandatory Vehicle Restraint Usage for Children in Ghana”. The event aimed to address key legislative gaps and promote road safety in Ghana.
The workshop brought together selected Members of Parliament (MPs) from the Roads and Transport, Gender and Children, and Subsidiary Legislation committees, as well as representatives from the Road Safety Authority and the Ghana Police Service.
The workshop identified inconsistencies in the application of child restraint protocols under Ghana’s road traffic laws, specifically between the Road Traffic Regulations (2012) and the Road Traffic Act (2004) as amended in 2008.
Join our WhatsApp Channel for more news
LADA’s team lead, Rowland Atta-Kesson, highlighted a conflicting stance on Ghana’s road traffic laws during his presentation at the workshop. While the Road Traffic Act (2004) prohibits children under five from sitting in the front seat (Section 14(1)), a conflicting regulation (L.I 2180, Regulation 119(5)) allows children under five to sit in the front seat, except in certain circumstances.
He proposed the introduction of a new Regulation 43 under the ongoing Road Traffic (Amendment) Regulations, 2024, to provide an updated framework for road safety.
“Even at this late hour, let’s remove the exception from the L.I so that Regulation 119 will align perfectly with the total provision under Regulation 43,” he said.
He added that there are no established standards for child restraint systems in Ghana.
“There’s no standard that exists as of today for child restraint commitments and so one of the things we are advocating for is for those standards to be developed,” he said.
Similarly, the MPs also recognized the urgent need to address the legislative gaps related to child seatbelt use and Blood Alcohol Concentration (BAC) levels, and are committed to including these provisions in the Act’s amendment.
In addition, the National Road Safety Authority’s Director of Research, Monitoring and Evaluation, Mr Martin Owusu Afram, the country has struggled with a high rate of road accidents and fatalities, with a daily average of eight road deaths and a yearly toll of over 2,000 lives lost.
He cited dangerous driving practices, insufficient road infrastructure, and a general lack of adherence to traffic regulations as the cause and encouraged politicians to prioritize road safety in their manifestos and campaigns
“When we are able to find road safety in your manifestoes, it can help drive change and ensure good mobility on our roads. As you engage the constituents, after preaching your political messages, teach them to walk safely, ride and drive safely so that they can live to vote for us,” Afram said.
