As Nigeria joins the rest of the world to mark the 2025 Global Road Safety Week, the Corps Marshal of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), Shehu Mohammed has stressed the need for collective efforts to make the campaign for safer road environment in Nigeria successful. The Corps Marshal made the call in his message to the United Nations’ one week global event which is aimed at creating public awareness on walking and cycling as essential elements of people’s daily activities in their movements across the globe and the need to create safer pathways for them.

The Corps Marshal stated that the theme for this year’s event is: “Safe walking and cycling calling for evidence-based measures to make walking and cycling safe.” He further revealed that activities to mark the one week event will commence on Monday, 12 May 2025 through 18 May, 2025, stressing that various programs have been lined up to sensitize members of the public on the importance of the week and need for collaboration to achieve the set goals in the country. “The World Health Organization (WHO) found that road traffic injuries have become a leading cause of death and disability worldwide, killing nearly 1.2 million people while causing injuries to as many as 50 million people globally each year,” he stated.

He further disclosed that as the leading killer of young people aged between 5-29 years, it’s estimated that more than 1 out of every 4 deaths involve pedestrians and cyclists. The Corps Marshal stressed that the week offers an opportunity to spur action at national and local levels to make walking and cycling safe, by highlighting concrete and specific interventions that can be taken by different stakeholders at the governmental, international agencies, civil society groups, businesses and school levels to promote and facilitate a shift to walking and cycling. These, he said, will  create  healthier, greener, more sustainable and economically advantageous modes of transportation.

As the lead agency for road traffic management and safety administration in Nigeria, FRSC has remained active in all local and international advocacies aimed at creating public awareness on road safety matters especially in promoting walking and cycling which is being done in collaboration with the Cycling Association of Nigeria. “Consequently, FRSC has stepped up constructive engagements with relevant stakeholders in government and nongovernmental organizations who are involved in road construction to sensitize them on the need to make adequate provisions in their road designs for walkway and cycling paths as a way of promoting non motorized means of transportation,” Corps Marshal Shehu further stated.

The Corps Marshal restated the commitment of the FRSC to all global campaigns for safer road environment in contributing to the success of many of the Sustainable Development Goals in the country.

It would be recalled that the United Nations (UN) General Assembly officially approved the creation of the Global Road Safety Week in October 2005 to provide a platform for global and regional activities and to raise awareness about road safety issues, including road safety risks and preventive interventions. FRSC as Nigeria’s lead road safety agency has been at the vanguard of the campaign both within the country and at the West African subregion under the auspices of the West African Road Safety Organization (WARSO)

Olusegun Ogungbemide, mni, anipr FISPON

Assistant Corps Marshal

Corps Public Education Officer

Federal Road Safety Corps National Headquarters Abuja