Dear Julius Neequaye Kotey,
I write to draw your attention to a growing and unnecessary phenomenon affecting millions of vehicle owners across Ghana, the compulsory attachment of red/white reflector stickers at the back and white reflector stickers in front of vehicles.
These stickers are being demanded across DVLA inspection points and police checkpoints, often under the justification of “ensuring visibility” and “reducing road accidents.” But respectfully, this raises an important question:
What exactly is the objective of this requirement?
Because the global automotive industry has, for decades, built vehicles with factory-fitted reflective components. Tail lights and headlights of modern vehicles, especially from the early 2000s to date, already come with embedded reflectors designed to meet international safety and visibility standards.
So why are we forcing Ghanaian vehicle owners to purchase additional reflector stickers that add no measurable safety value?
Sir, let’s examine two countries:
1. United Kingdom (UK)
Vehicles are required to have built-in reflectors as part of their manufacturing compliance (UNECE regulations). No external reflector stickers are mandated. If a vehicle meets factory safety standards, nothing extra is required.
2. United States (USA)
Under the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSS 108), vehicles already come with embedded reflectors. No police officer or licensing authority demands aftermarket reflector stickers for visibility. If your lights and reflectors work as designed, the vehicle is roadworthy.
In both countries, and many others, the responsibility is on vehicle manufacturers to install approved reflectors during production, not on citizens to buy stickers on the roadside.
Ghana continues to insist on reflector stickers.
At this point, the requirement has become:
a financial burden
a source of harassment for drivers
a needless ritual at inspection centers
and, frankly, a loophole that feeds petty corruption
We cannot build a progressive nation on rules that create artificial hardship and empower unauthorized roadside enforcement. Ghana should not legalize inefficiency for the benefit of a few.
My Respectful Recommendation
I humbly propose that the DVLA conduct an immediate review of this regulation and consider the following:
1. Phase out the mandatory reflector sticker requirement:
For all vehicles with factory-fitted reflectors, which is the majority of vehicles on our roads.
2. Reserve reflector sticker requirements only for:
vehicles older than a specific manufacturing year (e.g., pre-1995 or pre-2000) vehicles with damaged, missing, or non-functional built-in reflectors
Huge vehicles like trailers that require supplemental reflective marking under global norms
3. Issue a new DVLA directive
Clarifying the policy so that drivers are not extorted or harassed over a requirement that has no basis in modern automotive safety standards.
4. Align Ghana’s vehicle inspection standards with global best practices
As a country moving towards smart mobility, digital licensing, and modern transport systems, such outdated measures only set us back.
DVLA has been leading several reforms, such as digitalization, enhanced roadworthiness tests, and regulatory modernization. Removing this unnecessary sticker requirement would be another step toward efficiency, fairness, and international standardization.
We can protect lives without burdening citizens.
We can improve safety without encouraging roadside corruption.
Let’s build a Ghana where regulation serves the people, not the other way around.
Respectfully,
The Pope
Cc: Nii Sowa (Board Chairman, DVLA)
