For more than a decade, carrying a fare-paying passenger on a motorbike was illegal in Ghana, and okada ran across Accra anyway. That has changed on paper. The Road Traffic (Amendment) Act, 2025 (Act 1153), assented to on 24 December 2025, permits commercial motorcycles, tricycles and quadricycles, and the Road Traffic Regulations, 2026 (L.I. 2519) set the rules for them.

It is being brought in step by step, and the rules below are being phased in rather than switched on in one day.

— Ghana’s new road traffic rules

What a rider needs

  • A commercial rider’s licence from the DVLA - a different thing from an ordinary motorbike licence. A rider must be at least 21, hold a Ghana Card, and belong to a recognised union or company. Riders already working have 12 months from the regulations taking effect to get one.
  • Membership of a registered union or company. The National Road Safety Authority has said “no union, no okada”: from November 2026 a rider who belongs to neither is not to operate. Unions register with the NRSA, which passes vetted riders’ names to the DVLA for licensing.
  • A registered bike with a road use certificate, as for any commercial vehicle.
  • A helmet, and reflective clothing. Riding without them is an offence under regulation 109.

A company running a fleet has to register as a commercial road transport organisation, with a presence in at least 8 regions and at least 100 vehicles in each.

The passenger rules

  • One passenger, sitting astride, behind the rider.
  • The passenger wears a helmet too.

If you take one

Okada is the fastest way through Accra traffic and the most dangerous. The law changing does not change the road.

  • Insist on a helmet. No second helmet, no ride.
  • Agree the fare first, or use an app that shows it.
  • Ask to see the rider’s licence or union ID. A rider working within the new rules has one.
  • Hold on to the rider or the grab bar, keep bags in front of you, and get off if the riding scares you.
  • Avoid riding at night and in heavy rain.

Insurance

Ask whether the rider’s insurance covers passengers. If you are injured, third-party cover is what pays, and a rider outside the new system may not have it.

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