Data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) shows that 2,080 road accidents occurred in the second quarter of 2020.ยน Accounting for 47 percent of crashes, speed violation was reported to be the leading cause of crashes, followed by wrongful overtaking which accounted for 10 percent. A total of 855 lives were lost in road crashes with 5,535 people injured during the period. In both cases of injury and death, adults formed the majority amounting to 93 percent and 92 percent respectively. According to the report, men were approximately 4 times more likely to be a victim of road accident than women. The leading number of road accident cases occurred in the following states: Kaduna (177), Ogun (170), FCT (165), and Oyo (138). While the Federal Road Safety Corp (FRSC) penalizes traffic violations, it is imperative to display speed limits, sensitize the public on penalties/fines, and implement an automobile speed violation detection system across the country, particularly in urban areas. This will curb accidents as a result of over speeding and also increase the revenue accruing the government through payment of penalties/fines.
November 6, 2020
Nigeria Economic Update (Issue 40)
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Nigeria Economic Update (Issue 1)
Nigerias external reserves improved in 2017. The reserve stood at approximately $39 billion as at the end of December 2017, up by about 50 percent from the $26 billion at the beginning of the year 20172. The surge in reserve was particularly boosted by increased capital importation, and crude revenue earnings prompted by a relatively higher crude oil price and improved domestic production. Given that the recent uptick in external reserves is still largely associated with improved crude oil price, efforts should be geared towards conserving current reserve gain so as to cushion future external shock. In the medium term, there is need to diversify export earning away from oil so as to mitigate the effects of volatility in crude oil prices.