What You Need to Know
In 2025, Mozambique experienced a troubling rise in road fatalities, with 830 lives lost due to traffic accidents. The Attorney General highlighted the lack of professional driver training and rampant corruption within transport regulatory bodies as key factors contributing to this crisis. The report emphasizes the urgent need for improved safety measures and accountability in the public transport
Africa-Press – Mozambique. Mozambique recorded 611 road traffic accidents in 2025, resulting in the deaths of 830 people, an increase of five deaths compared to 2024, the Attorney General said on Wednesday in parliament, acknowledging a lack of professionalism among drivers.
When presenting the public prosecutor’s annual report for 2025 to MPs, attorney general, Américo Letela, indicated that Maputo province led the number of deaths, with 152, followed by the city of Maputo, with 139, and Gaza, with 88, all in the south of the country.
“The lack of professional training among drivers of public transport, minibuses and freight vehicles contributes to the high accident rate, making it necessary for these workers to hold professional licences to carry out this activity and to undergo periodic assessments, including of their individual conduct,” he said.
Accidents were also linked to breaches of safety regulations, shortcomings in traffic enforcement and the poor technical condition of vehicles, he said, calling for greater accountability from the public passenger transport licensing sector.
The public prosecutor’s office argues that public lighting and signage had to keep pace with the growth of the vehicle fleet to prevent accidents, while also acknowledging challenges relating to a lack of rigour in driver training, corruption schemes, and the forgery of driving licences.
“We must highlight a growing and worrying trend that is emerging as a risk to road safety (…) the proliferation of motorbike taxis, driven by unqualified individuals, without due observance of minimum driving rules, in clear violation of the permitted capacity limits of these vehicles,” he said, calling for licencing and registration mechanisms for these operators, including proper road enforcement to reduce accidents.
The prosecutor said that corruption at the National Road Transport Institute (INATRO) was one of the primary causes of road accidents, accusing the body of issuing driving licences in an “irregular or fraudulent” manner, which resulted in the placement of inadequately trained drivers on the road.
“This phenomenon contributes to the rise in road accidents, undermines the authority of the regulatory state and turns the road into a place of constant danger for citizens.”
“Corruption, in this context, ceases to be an administrative or criminal problem and becomes a concrete threat to people’s lives and physical integrity,” he said.
He also said that corruption within the traffic police also contributed to higher road accident rates and undermined state authority on the roads, by accepting “illicit benefits” to allow unroadworthy vehicles to be driven, ignoring serious traffic offences, and tolerating driving without a valid licence or under the influence of alcohol.
“Driving by unlicensed individuals, the circulation of vehicles that do not meet minimum safety standards, and the operation of semi-public transport services in an irregular manner are direct consequences of corruption within regulatory bodies and weaknesses in enforcement mechanisms,” he said.
On 27 November, the president of Mozambique urged the police to take measures to reduce road accidents, which he also linked to corrupt practices within the force, expressing his inability to understand how senior officers can “turn a blind eye” to this situation.
The attorney general concluded saying that lake, maritime and rail accidents claimed 54 lives in 2025.
Road safety has been a persistent issue in Mozambique, with increasing vehicle numbers and inadequate infrastructure contributing to high accident rates. The government has faced challenges in enforcing traffic regulations and ensuring driver competency, leading to calls for reforms in training and licensing processes. Corruption within regulatory bodies has further exacerbated the situation, undermining public trust and safety on the roads. Recent reports indicate a growing trend of unqualified drivers, particularly in the burgeoning motorbike taxi sector, posing additional risks to road users.
