Data source page
Road Safety Data Sources for Zambia, 2015–2025
This page brings together credible road safety statistics, reports, country profiles and institutional references on road traffic crashes, deaths, injuries, contributing factors and economic burden in Zambia.
It is designed for journalists, donors, researchers, government agencies, corporates, insurers, students and road safety partners who need a reliable starting point for road safety evidence.
Institutional introduction
Reliable road safety data supports better public decisions.
Road safety data matters because it helps Zambia identify where people are dying, who is most exposed, which behaviours and system failures are contributing to crashes, and where investment should be prioritised.
Why data matters
Credible road safety data supports policy decisions, enforcement planning, infrastructure investment, donor funding, school-zone safety, fleet safety, commercial transport safety, post-crash response and public accountability.
How ZRST treats data
ZRST does not treat every number as equal. A police-reported fatality figure, an RTSA annual report, a WHO modelled estimate, a UNDP investment case and a project-level monitoring report all answer different questions.
Key statistics
Selected road safety indicators from credible sources.
Causes and contributing factors
What the data shows about causes and system weaknesses.
Zambian road crash data often records human behaviour as a major contributing category, including excessive speed, misjudgement, dangerous driving, unsafe overtaking, failure to keep near side, reversing negligently and driving under the influence. However, a Safe System interpretation must go further.
Reported behavioural factors
- Excessive speed
- Misjudging clearance distance
- Failure to keep near side
- Unsafe overtaking
- Driving under the influence
- Reversing negligently
- Fatigue and distraction where reported
System factors that must also be examined
- Road design and speed environment
- Pedestrian and cyclist exposure
- Defective vehicles, tyres and brakes
- Weak enforcement coverage
- Commercial transport pressure
- Limited emergency response capacity
- Data gaps and under-reporting
Safe System interpretation
Crashes should not be treated only as individual driver failure. Death and serious injury are shaped by speed, vehicle safety, road design, exposure, enforcement, emergency care, institutional capacity and the quality of data used to guide decisions.
Practical implication
Zambia needs data-led investment in safer speeds, safer school zones, protected pedestrian and cycling facilities, commercial transport compliance, fleet safety systems, motorcycle safety and stronger post-crash response.
Source categories
Main institutional road safety data sources.
Each institution has a different role in the road safety data system. Users should compare sources carefully before quoting figures.
Zambia Police Service, ZP
Zambia Police data usually provides:
- Quarterly accident statistics
- Fatal accidents and deaths
- Serious and slight injuries
- Damage-only accidents
- Cause categories
- Provincial breakdowns where available
Road Transport and Safety Agency, RTSA
RTSA data usually provides:
- Annual road safety reports
- Crash and casualty trends
- Driver and vehicle licensing data
- Enforcement and education activities
- Vehicle inspection and fleet safety references
- Policy and regulatory context
World Health Organization, WHO
WHO data usually provides:
- Global Status Report data
- Zambia country profile
- Reported and estimated deaths
- Mortality rates
- Risk factor legislation
- Helmet, seatbelt, child restraint and speed indicators
UNDP Zambia
UNDP data usually provides:
- Economic cost of road crashes
- Road safety investment case
- Safe Roads Zambia references
- Non-motorised transport evidence
- Vulnerable road user and school-zone safety evidence
- Investment and prevention scenarios
Data timeline
Available road safety data sources, 2015–2025.
This table prioritises official or credible public sources.
| Year | Source agency | Source | Main data included | Link | Status | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | RTSA / Zambia Police | 2015 annual road traffic crash source | Annual crashes, deaths, injuries, causes | Missing | Missing | Under verification |
| 2016 | RTSA, using Zambia Police crash data | Annual Road Traffic Accident Report, 2016 | Road traffic crashes, fatalities, injuries, province and cause analysis | Open source | Download PDF | |
| 2017 | RTSA, using Zambia Police crash data | 2017 Annual Road Traffic Crashes Report | Road traffic crash statistics collected from Zambia Police | Open source | Download PDF | |
| 2018 | RTSA | Annual Traffic Accident Report, 2018 | 30,652 crashes, 1,817 fatalities, pedestrian fatality share, child casualties, contributory factors | Open source | Download PDF | |
| 2019 | RTSA | 2019 Annual Road Traffic Crash Report | Crashes, casualties, fatalities, child casualties, road user type, contributory factors | Open source | Download PDF | |
| 2020 | RTSA | 2020 Annual Road Transport and Safety Status Report | Road traffic crashes, fatalities, injuries, mitigation measures and recommendations | Open source | Download PDF | |
| 2021 | RTSA / WHO / UNDP | 2021 Road Transport and Safety Status Report, WHO Zambia profile, UNDP Investment Case | Reported fatalities, WHO estimated fatalities, risk factors and economic cost references | Open RTSA source | Download PDF | |
| 2022 | RTSA | RTSA Annual Report, 2022 | Agency operations, vehicle imports, road safety activities and institutional reporting | Open source | Download PDF | |
| 2023 | RTSA / WHO / UNDP | 2023 Road Transport and Safety Status Report, WHO Global Status Report, UNDP Investment Case | Fatalities, trends, WHO profile, cost of crashes and investment case analysis | Open RTSA source | Download PDF | |
| 2024 | RTSA / Zambia Police / WHO | RTSA Annual Report, 2024, Zambia Police annual statistics statements, WHO Zambia profile | Annual institutional reporting, road traffic accident totals, fatalities and serious injuries | Open RTSA source | Download PDF | |
| 2025 | Zambia Police / media reports citing police statements | 2025 annual and quarterly road traffic accident statistics | Total accidents, fatal accidents, deaths, serious injuries, slight injuries and quarterly trends | Open public report |
PDF downloads
Core reports and downloadable sources.
These links should be periodically checked because agencies may move PDF files or update their websites.
WHO Zambia country profile, 2023
Contains Zambia’s reported fatalities, WHO estimated fatalities, rate per 100,000 population, vehicle data, legislation and risk factor indicators.
Download PDFUNDP Road Safety in Zambia, Investment Case
Contains Zambia’s road crash economic cost, prevention scenarios and investment case analysis.
Download PDFRTSA 2018 Annual Traffic Accident Report
Contains detailed crash, casualty, road user type, child casualty and contributory factor analysis.
Download PDFRTSA 2019 Annual Crash Statistics Report
Contains crash trends, casualties, fatalities, children casualties and provincial analysis.
Download PDFRTSA 2020 Road Transport and Safety Status Report
Contains 2020 crash statistics and road safety mitigation measures.
Download PDFRTSA 2021 Road Transport and Safety Status Report
Contains 2021 crash, casualty and road safety data.
Download PDFData interpretation note
Why road safety figures may differ between sources.
Police-reported deaths
These are deaths recorded through police crash reporting systems. They are important for enforcement and administrative reporting, but may differ from health-sector or modelled figures.
RTSA administrative data
RTSA reports commonly analyse road traffic crash data collected from Zambia Police and combine it with agency enforcement, licensing, vehicle and road safety programme information.
WHO modelled estimates
WHO estimates are intended to improve comparability across countries and may adjust for under-reporting or differences in data systems. WHO estimates should be labelled as estimates, not police totals.
Health and hospital data
Health-sector data can capture injury burden and treatment outcomes, but may not always connect cleanly to police crash records.
Project-level monitoring data
School-zone, corridor, fleet or motorcycle project data may measure speed, behaviour, training attendance, infrastructure completion or site risk, not national crash totals.
Under-reporting risk
Differences between police, health and WHO estimates may reflect under-reporting, crash definition differences, follow-up periods, data completeness and institutional reporting processes.
ZRST position
How ZRST uses road safety data.
ZRST uses road safety data to support practical implementation, public accountability and evidence-led advocacy. ZRST does not own Zambia’s national road safety data system.
Identifying priority risks
ZRST uses data to identify high-risk schools, corridors, communities, pedestrian locations, motorcycle risk areas and fleet safety concerns.
Supporting 30 km/h school zones
Data helps ZRST advocate for lower speeds around schools, safer crossings, signs, traffic calming and school-zone implementation.
Designing donor proposals
Credible data helps ZRST prepare evidence-led proposals for donors, embassies, companies, insurers, mines, logistics firms and technical partners.
Monitoring funded work
ZRST uses site data, photos, attendance sheets, partner confirmations and before-and-after evidence to monitor funded road safety projects.
Additional external references
Useful institutional and partner-hosted sources.
These sources provide useful context on Zambia’s road safety burden, investment case, vulnerable road users and Safe Roads Zambia project work.
UN Road Safety Fund, Safe Roads Zambia
Project reference for creating safer cities for non-motorised transportation users in Zambia.
Open UNRSF project pageUNDP Zambia, safer school journeys
Press release on reducing speeding around schools in Lusaka through infrastructure improvements.
Open UNDP sourceWHO Global Status Report on Road Safety 2023
Global road safety report and country profile framework used to compare countries and risk factor legislation.
Open WHO global report pageRTSA publications page
RTSA’s public page for annual reports, road safety reports and guidance documents.
RTSA