World’s worst countries to drive in – ranked

The world’s worst countries to drive in have been ranked and mapped by the World Health Organisation. We take a look at the latest results

The fifth Global Status Report on Road Safety from the World Health Organisation (WHO) has been released. The report suggests that road traffic deaths have modestly declined to approximately 1.19 million fatalities annually.

Despite this progress – reflecting a 5% reduction since 2010 – road traffic injuries remain a leading preventable threat, particularly among children and young adults.

Guinea has been named the world’s worst country to drive in, recording the highest number of road traffic deaths per 100,000 people. The Maldives has been named the best country to drive in, recording the lowest number of road traffic deaths per 100,000 people.

While a small number of countries have made substantial strides in reducing fatalities, the global trajectory remains insufficient to meet the urgent target of halving road deaths and injuries by 2030.

The report offers a comprehensive analysis of trends from 2010 to 2021, evaluates legislative and policy advances and underscores critical gaps that must be addressed to safeguard lives in the evolving context of urbanisation and technological change.

WHO releases a new Global Status Report on Road Safety every two to three years, assessing countries against several criteria, including:

• Reported number of road traffic deaths
• Estimated number of road traffic deaths
• Estimated number of road traffic deaths per 100,000 people
• Estimated number of road traffic deaths per mode of transport (car, motorcycle, cycle, pedestrian)

Two different figures are presented for the number of road deaths in each country: the reported number and the estimated number.

The reported number is the figure submitted to WHO by authorities in participating member states.

The estimated number is the figure WHO arrives at once adjustments are made to account for potential under-reporting, differences in definitions and any limitations a country may have when it comes to collecting data.

Member states have the opportunity to challenge WHO estimates, as they are usually significantly higher than the submitted statistics.

World’s worst countries to drive in

DP 100k: estimated deaths per 100,000 people (WHO)
Est deaths: estimated total number of road traffic deaths (WHO)
Rep deaths: total number of reported road traffic deaths

Rank	Country	DP 100k	Est deaths	Rep deaths
1	Guinea	37.4	5,061	682
2	Libya	34.0	2,287	2,218
3	Haiti	31.3	3,579	134
4	Guinea-Bissau	30.5	629	100
5	Zimbabwe	29.9	4,782	1,902
6	Syria	29.9	6,383	549
7	Yemen	29.8	9,821	3,409
8	Comoros	29.0	238	32
9	Nepal	28.2	8,479	2,883
10	Kenya	28.2	14,926	4,579
11	Burkina Faso	27.8	6,137	1,272
12	Dominican Rep	27.4	3,048	2,967
13	Chad	26.4	4,533	254
14	Central African Rep	25.9	1,412	1,370
15	Ghana	25.9	8,494	2,890
16	Thailand	25.4	18,218	16,957
17	Niger	24.9	6,278	1,152
18	Benin	24.8	3,225	1,124
19	Eswatini	24.7	295	229
20	South Africa	24.5	14,528	12,541
21	Afghanistan	24.1	9,684	738
22	Ecuador	23.4	4,173	2,131
23	South Sudan	23.3	2,500	350
24	Togo	22.7	1,961	680
25	Madagascar	22.5	6,512	300
26	Gambia	22.0	582	200
27	Namibia	22.0	557	540
28	Lesotho	21.6	492	282
29	El Salvador	21.5	1,358	1,358
30	Iraq	21.5	9,344	5,563
31	Paraguay	21.0	1,405	1,396
32	Senegal	20.8	3,502	877
33	Côte d’Ivoire	20.6	5,670	1,614
34	Iran	20.6	18,156	16,778
35	Malawi	20.2	4,023	1,444
36	Mali	20.2	4,429	736
37	Somalia	20.2	3,440	70
38	Mozambique	20.1	6,451	944
39	Sudan	19.6	8,967	3,024
40	Myanmar	19.3	10,405	5,325
41	Cambodia	18.8	3,113	1,794
42	Bangladesh	18.6	31,578	5,084
43	Morocco	18.6	6,900	3,685
44	Honduras	18.5	1,904	1,743
45	Saudi Arabia	18.5	6,651	6,035
46	Algeria	18.3	8,106	3,322
47	Jamaica	17.8	502	487
48	Vietnam	17.7	17,229	5,699
49	Eritrea	17.7	640	100
50	Ethiopia	17.7	21,258	3,971

Rank	Country	DP 100k	Est deaths	Rep deaths
51	Bolivia	17.6	2,127	1,325
52	Belize	17.5	70	70
53	China	17.4	248,099	62,218
54	Azerbaijan	17.2	1,769	706
55	Nigeria	17.2	36,722	6,205
56	Zambia	17.1	3,338	2,163
57	Botswana	16.5	426	413
58	Cabo Verde	16.5	97	39
59	Laos	16.4	1,217	831
60	DR Congo	16.3	15,615	3,364
61	Tunisia	16.3	2,004	2,273
62	Bahamas	16.2	66	50
63	Colombia	16.2	8,341	7,238
64	Suriname	16.2	99	96
65	Uganda	16.0	7,315	4,159
66	Tanzania	15.8	10,052	1,368
67	Brazil	15.7	33,586	31,468
68	Costa Rica	15.5	798	722
69	India	15.4	216,618	153,972
70	Liberia	15.3	794	232
71	Guyana	15.2	122	99
72	USA	14.2	47,750	42,939
73	Tajikistan	13.9	1,352	395
74	Malaysia	13.9	4,680	4,539
75	Sierra Leone	13.8	1,165	336
76	Bosnia & Herz	13.7	447	263
77	Armenia	13.6	379	368
78	Jordan	13.6	1,514	589
79	Nicaragua	13.6	932	904
80	Kyrgyzstan	13.3	869	869
81	Venezuela	13.2	3,718	0
82	Uruguay	13.0	447	434
83	Georgia	12.7	476	449
84	Peru	12.7	4,284	3,032
85	Guatemala	12.6	2,221	2,154
86	Gabon	12.5	293	89
87	Mongolia	12.4	414	383
88	Burundi	12.3	1,546	592
89	Kazakhstan	12.2	2,340	2,270
90	Bhutan	12.2	95	71
91	Timor-Leste	12.0	159	59
92	Mexico	12.0	15,267	14,721
93	Pakistan	11.9	27,568	5,816
94	Sao Tome & Prin	11.7	26	25
95	Rwanda	11.6	1,563	655
96	Sri Lanka	11.5	2,513	2,513
97	Indonesia	11.3	31,063	25,266
98	Oman	11.0	497	434
99	Dominica	11.0	8	8
100	Albania	10.8	309	197

Rank	Country	DP 100k	Est deaths	Rep deaths
101	Russia	10.6	15,335	14,874
102	Cameroon	10.6	2,870	930
103	Chile	10.3	2,009	1,688
104	Barbados	10.0	28	16
105	Latvia	9.8	183	147
106	Lebanon	9.7	544	378
107	Philippines	9.7	11,062	8,746
108	Mauritius	9.7	126	108
109	Samoa	9.6	21	19
110	Mauritania	9.5	438	99
111	Egypt	9.4	10,263	7,101
112	Uzbekistan	9.3	3,155	2,197
113	Kuwait	9.2	389	323
114	Montenegro	9.1	57	55
115	Moldova	9.1	278	257
116	Saint Lucia	8.9	16	14
117	Argentina	8.8	3,983	3,863
118	Bulgaria	8.4	578	561
119	Congo	8.4	488	223
120	Croatia	8.1	328	292
121	Bahrain	8.1	118	62
122	Antigua & Barbuda	7.5	7	7
123	Belarus	7.4	706	524
124	Hungary	7.4	718	544
125	Serbia	7.4	537	521
126	Greece	7.3	762	584
127	Qatar	7.3	197	161
128	Panama	7.3	316	243
129	Portugal	7.2	736	561
130	South Korea	6.9	3,570	2,916
131	New Zealand	6.6	338	319
132	Seychelles	6.6	7	7
133	Poland	6.5	2,474	2,245
134	Türkiye	6.5	5,528	5,362
135	Slovakia	6.4	346	226
136	Lithuania	6.3	175	148
137	Kiribati	6.2	8	8
138	UAE	5.9	557	381
139	Slovenia	5.8	122	114
140	North Macedonia	5.7	120	116
141	Cuba	5.4	613	589
142	Czechia	5.2	548	532
143	Italy	5.0	2,964	2,875
144	Trinidad & Tobago	5.0	77	75
145	Palestine	4.7	239	186
146	France	4.7	3,035	2,944
147	Canada	4.7	1,805	1,751
148	Austria	4.6	409	362
149	Belgium	4.6	532	516
150	Australia	4.5	1,163	1,128

Rank	Country	DP 100k	Est deaths	Rep deaths
151	Estonia	4.4	59	55
152	Finland	4.2	232	225
153	Israel	4.2	375	364
154	Cyprus	3.9	49	45
155	Luxembourg	3.9	25	24
156	Spain	3.5	1,653	1,533
157	Netherlands	3.4	600	582
158	Germany	3.3	2,778	2,562
159	Ireland	2.8	141	137
160	Japan	2.7	3,304	3,205
161	Iceland	2.4	9	9
162	Switzerland	2.4	206	200
163	UK	2.4	1,606	1,608
164	Denmark	2.3	134	130
165	Sweden	2.1	217	210
166	Malta	1.9	10	9
167	Singapore	1.9	110	107
168	Norway	1.5	82	80
169	Maldives	1.3	7	5

More rankings and articles can be found in our remote work area:

► Most dangerous countries in the world
► Countries with the best healthcare in the world
► Most peaceful countries in the world
► Best countries for women
► Poorest countries in the world – ranked
► Happiest countries in the world
► World’s most powerful passport
► Countries with the fastest internet in the world
► Most stressed countries in the world
► Most expensive cities for expats
► World’s most democratic countries

---

Enjoyed this post? pin it for later…

---

Lead image: Elena Ermakova/Shutterstock