Ms Mariam Naa Abbey, a 26-year old Teaching Assistant of the School of Performing Arts, University of Ghana has been crowned as the winner of the maiden edition of Miss Road Safety 2011 in Accra.

Ms Abbey beat nine others including Esther Amoric, Isabella Ama Yeboah, Adarkwa Acheampomah, Evelyn Nusenu, Monica Tampuri, Portia Amoah, Roseline Appiah, Matilda Akua Adubosua, and Janet Moyan to win the coveted crown.

With the win, Ms Abbey would now serve as the ambassador for the national Road Safety Campaign for a year. As part of the event, contestants were asked to deliver a message on road safety topics which was followed by a talent performances.

It was time to cut the number of delegates to five which saw Matilda Akua Adubosua, Mariam Naa Abbey, Roseline Appiah, Monica Tampuri and Portia Amoah making it to the top five.

The five delegates then went through a Question and Answers segment where they answered questions on “awareness creation on road safety in Ghana, causes of road accidents and preventive measures” among others winning the admiration of the audience.

After this segment Monica Tampuri was declared the second runner up, Matilda Akua Adubosua, first runner up and the ultimate prize went to Mariam Naa Abbey.

For Ms Abbey’s prize, she won the coveted crown, a saloon car and a shopping voucher, while Ms Tampuri received a Dell mini laptop and a shopping voucher valued at GH¢100 and for Ms Adubosua, a notebook laptop and a shopping voucher valued at GH¢ 50.

Mrs Dzifa Attivor, Deputy Minister of Transport, said road safety was important because for a country to develop, it needed its human resources.

She called on all to assist in helping to create awareness on road safety, since it was a collective responsibility.

Mr Noble Appiah, Executive Director at the National Road Safety Commission (NRSC), appealed to riders of motorbike to use helmets for safety.

He urged corporate institutions and individuals to continue to find initiatives to improve on road safety

Mr Emmanuel Kweku Hayford, the Managing Director of Functional Keys Limited, the event the organizers, said the pageant does not only seek to project a personality who would use her influence as an ambassador to boost sponsorships and participation for road safety projects but also to show the public how they could positively impact road safety.