Countries from across Africa have come together in Accra to strengthen efforts to improve motorcycle helmet safety, hosted by the FIA Foundation, Transaid and Ghana’s National Road Safety Authority (NRSA). 

The Safe African Helmets Initiative (SAHI) Summit brings policymakers, road safety experts, practitioners and industry representatives together to address the growing burden of motorcycle deaths and injuries. The three-day event focused on the challenges countries face in ensuring quality helmets are available to motorcycle users. The programme brought together participants from countries including Ghana, Uganda, Benin, Rwanda, Kenya, Cameroon, Nigeria, and Ethiopia to share experiences and develop practical solutions. 

Motorcycle use has expanded rapidly across Africa, with numbers increasing from around 7 million in 2011 to an estimated 30 million today. Motorcyclists now account for around 35% of road deaths across Africa, while representing just over a quarter of road deaths in Ghana. At the same time, road deaths in Africa have increased by 17%, even as global road deaths have slightly declined. 

A quality helmet, correctly worn, can reduce the risk of death by around six times and head injuries by 69%, making access to effective helmets a critical component of motorcycle safety. 

Hon. Joseph Bukari Nikpe, Ghana's Minister of Transport, delivered the Summit's keynote address, with Hon. Julius Debrah, Chief of Staff to the President of Ghana, also addressing participants.  Opening the Summit, Aggie Krasnolucka of the FIA Foundation highlighted the importance of coordinated action across governments, civil society, technical experts and the private sector. 

Hon. Julius Debrah, Chief of Staff to the President of Ghana, in his opening address, said: "Motorcycles have become indispensable across our continent. They connect communities, move goods, help traders reach markets, and create livelihoods for many young people. In some places, they are the quickest way to reach a school, a clinic, or a workplace. This is Africa's mobility reality. Together we can advance the global goal of halving road deaths and injuries by 2030 and build transport systems that place human life at the centre. Every head deserves a safe helmet, every journey deserves a safe return, and every life saved is a family kept home." 

Hon. Joseph Bukari Nikpe, Ghana's Minister of Transport, speaking at the event, said: "On the standard and quality of the helmet, it is a bitter irony that a rider may obey the laws by wearing a helmet, yet perish because the helmet itself was not designed to save a life. The Safe African Helmet Initiative is more than a technical engagement. It is an expression of continental solidarity: No African country will resolve this problem alone. It is when we work together that we will be able to overcome this." 

The Summit's programme included discussions on Ghana's progress in motorcycle helmet safety, country spotlights and technical workshops on quality helmet standards. Sessions examined the challenges of enforcing helmet standards, testing laboratories, market surveillance, research, financing and procurement, as well as coordination between government and non-government organisations. 

Participants also joined demonstrations of Ghana's ‘Traffitech’ police enforcement system and took part in practical problem clinics focused on strengthening national systems for helmet testing, enforcement and market surveillance.  

Ghana has made significant motorcycle safety progress with the recent introduction of new legislation establishing a motorcycle helmet standard and legislation to formalise the legal status of commercial motorcycle riders. Under SAHI, Transaid is providing technical assistance to the Ghana Standards Authority, NRSA and the Ministry of Trade, Agribusiness and Industry, to support implementation of the new helmet standard. The work aims to support the operationalisation of the standard amongst key implementing agencies and improve access to certified helmets in the Ghanaian market. During the event, Aggie Krasnolucka, FIA Foundation Programmes Director, Caroline Barber, Transaid Chief Executive, and Hon. Joseph Bukari Nikpe, Ghana's Minister of Transport, signed a charter, affirming a shared commitment to supporting Ghana's motorcycle helmet progress. 

The SAHI Summit builds on the initiative's work since its inception in 2024 to provide a pan-African platform for sharing experience, identifying barriers and building consensus around action on motorcycle helmet safety, including high-level national advocacy, data collection, helmet testing and enforcement. SAHI is convened by the FIA Foundation as part of its wider Motorcycle Initiative, a global hub of interventions working to improve motorcycle safety through action on helmet safety, infrastructure, technology and legislation. 

Aggie Krasnolucka, Programmes Director, FIA Foundation, said: “Motorcycle safety requires action across the whole system – from legislation and standards to testing, enforcement, procurement and access to affordable quality helmets. SAHI provides an important space for countries to share practical experience and work together on the solutions needed to prevent deaths and serious injuries.” 

Sam Clark Head of Programmes for Transaid, said: “Motorcycles are an essential part of Africa’s transport network, supporting livelihoods and providing vital mobility for millions of people daily. Their rapid growth has highlighted an urgent need to improve rider and passenger safety. The Summit brings countries together to share practical solutions, learn from one another and build the partnerships needed to expand access to quality helmets and reduce preventable deaths and serious injuries.”