The accident involving an 18-passenger Toyota bus and a truck transporting a container happened in Kwara state on Thursday, said Udeme Eshiet of the Federal Road Safety Corps.

"Due to excess speeding in which the two drivers were involved... they could not negotiate the sharp bend properly, and when they eventually met, it resulted in head-on collision," he said.

Seventeen people on the bus died while the two occupants of the truck sustained serious injuries, he added.

Accidents are common on Nigeria's poorly-maintained roads, caused by reckless driving, speeding and disregard for traffic rules.

Nineteen people were killed last month when four vehicles collided on a busy road in northern Nigeria's Kano state.