Impact And Challenges Of Using Television And Billboards As Road Safety Education And Sensitization Tools In Ghana

Abstract

The National Road Safety Commission (NRSC) with the aim of making Ghana an accident free haven in West Africa has undertaken massive education and sensitization of all road users, especially drivers of commercial vehicles through the use of billboards and television. This paper presented an evaluation of the benefits and challenges associated with the use of these two concepts as mass media road safety educational campaign tools. The study combined individual in-depth interviews with questionnaire administration to 1028 respondents made up of key stakeholders in five specified Regions namely, Greater Accra, Volta, Western, Ashanti and Northern Regions of Ghana. The study revealed that, billboards are location-specific and are rarely placed on unpaved roads while impact of Television depends on the time and duration. The main challenge to
the billboard strategy is related to funding and the huge capital outlay needed to effectively undertake this process. This situation can be addressed by the use of stickers, pamphlets and posters, which by their nature constitute miniature billboards.