A reported 400,000 new motorcycle taxi registrations were recorded in Kenya between 2019 and 2023 bringing the total number of boda bodas on the roads to an estimated 2.2 million. This rapid growth is putting pressure on existing training providers and regulatory authorities at a time when the WHO is reporting a concerning increase in road traffic fatalities attributed in part to the rapid rise of powered two-wheelers in the region.
Clocking up an estimated 22 million journeys per day, boda bodas are an integral part of everyday travel and transit in Kenya, and help facilitate a growing number of new trades and services. Acknowledging this increasing demand, safety advocates and rider associations have taken action to diversify and broaden the reach of rider trainings with new content, along with efforts to bridge the skills gap for riders who may have bypassed traditional training routes.
In 2023 and as part of the National Helmet Wearing Coalition project, Coalition members developed and delivered a series of trainings aimed at improving motorcycle rider and passenger safety and compliance. These trainings were edited together with other newly created modules into a combined manual for the training of commercial motorcycle riders. The manual features five introductory modules: helmets and protective gear, rider insurance, customer service, sexual and gender-based violence; and first aid responder.
The combined manual was created with expert input from the Flone Initiative, Coalition on Violence Against Women, Kenya Red Cross Training Institute, Safe Way right Way, and Kenya Riders and Owners (KRO) Boda Boda Savings and Credit Cooperative Organisation (SACCO), and was made possible with support from the FIA Foundation.
Ghana’s road transport sector has attracted substantial investment in recent years and is now regarded as the country’s fastest growing economy. Supported by several large-scale infrastructure projects, including the Tema port expansion, Ghana is fast becoming a major trade and logistics hub and global gateway to the West Africa sub-region.
In 2019, amid safety concerns linked to an anticipated increase of heavy goods traffic on Ghana’s roads, Transaid was commissioned by APM Terminals to conduct a study into how this growth could be managed sustainably, in a way that prioritised safety. The study found that heavy goods vehicle (HGV) driver training provision in Ghana was limited, and that the standards mandated by the government fell below those utilised by many larger international transporters, who in turn communicated difficulties recruiting suitably skilled drivers locally. As well as highlighting a growing skills gap, the study brought to light concerns that many HGV drivers on Ghana’s roads may not be adequately trained for the demanding roles they undertake, putting all road users at risk.
Running between February 2021 and July 2024 with the support of the Puma Energy Foundation, Transaid delivered a programme to improve HGV driver training standards in Ghana, bringing them into alignment with current industry practice. More than 30 stakeholders from the public, private and civil society sectors contributed to the developed of a new training curriculum and instructor’s manual, which were used to train 19 HGV driver trainers and four master trainers in Ghana. Over a two-year period in the project, more than 2,000 HGV drivers received refresher training in accordance with the new standard.
Officially launched by the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Authority (DVLA) in June 2024, the new standard prescribes for the first time in Ghana the key competencies required of an HGV driver as well as the minimum number of hours each module is expected to take. The training materials are suitable for both refresher and new license acquisition trainings.
As the number of motorcycle taxis (boda bodas) continues to grow in Kenya, the report finds that the personal and economic price of a motorcycle taxi crash is high; helmet wearing prevalence amongst riders is low, helmet quality is low, head injuries are the leading cause of hospital admission, and hospital treatment for motorcycle taxi crashes can cost up to 4.5x the annual salary of the rider.
The report sets out the context of motorcycle taxis in Kenya, key findings from analysis of hospital records, national data analysis, observational studies and interviews, as well as case studies and recommendations to tackle motorcycle taxi injuries and deaths in Kenya.
To compile this report, Transaid worked in partnership with Multimedia University of Kenya, Safe Way Right Way Kenya, and Margie Peden, with support from the FIA Foundation.
Click below to download the full report.
As Transaid continues to implement a project to establish a National Helmet Wearing Coalition in Kenya, funded by global road safety philanthropy the FIA Foundation, one thing that has become clear is the complexity of the determining factors linked to motorcycle safety.
The National Helmet Wearing Coalition currently comprises representatives from 17 different organisations including government, civil society, academia, private sector and rider associations. The Coalition has identified the urgent need for stronger enforcement to save lives on Kenya’s roads, and plans to support this objective in a number of ways.
The collective voice that a coalition of organisations and agencies offers is definitely a strength when it comes to instigating positive change, as is the pool of expertise that member organisations from various sectors bring to this particular Coalition. Indeed, there are challenges, not least building relationships and understanding the dynamics between members, but this approach is vital particularly where complex issues such as those influencing motorcycle rider safety are concerned.
Click below to read the full article.
This paper draws on ethnographic research conducted 2019–2022 in three quite diverse city regions – Abuja, Cape Town and Tunis – to understand women’s lived experiences of work in the road transport sector. The strength of connection between male identity and motor-mobility in Africa is ubiquitous and has rarely been questioned by transport sector actors. Women are still largely absent from the story, constrained at least partly by hegemonic norms of femininity and an ‘affective atmosphere’ that deters female entry. However, there are occasional cases across Africa where women have dared to disrupt this masculinist enterprise, either as employees or entrepreneurs.
This study explores and compares women transport workers’ everyday experiences, drawing principally on in-depth interviews with those in customer-facing roles (taxi and bus drivers, bus conductors). Relevant public sector organisations and major transport employers were also consulted, while focus groups with community groups of men and women explored their attitudes to women employed as transport workers, and with school-girls investigated their career aspirations and views regarding employment in the sector. A final section looks to the future, post-COVID-19. Although new opportunities occasionally emerge for women, they need much more support, not only in terms of skills training, but also through flexible working opportunities, union recognition and action, microfinance and financial management training. This support is essential in order to expand the visibility of women transport workers and thus make the wider transport milieu less overwhelmingly male and more welcoming to women transport users.
Transaid’s Road Safety work continues in Mozambique, as part of an initiative led by GIZ Employment and Skills for Development in Africa (E4D), by supporting refresher training for heavy goods vehicle drivers within small and medium-size enterprises. This important work employs our proven ‘train the trainer’ model in helping to deliver a sustainable change to driver training standards in Mozambique.
As part of efforts to reach as many potential driver trainees as possible, the project produced radio spots to promote the initiative. These radio spots were publicised in Mozambique during prime time.
Gender-based violence (GBV) is a pervasive issue globally, and Cape Town, South Africa, is no exception. Here, women face numerous challenges as users of public transport.
Safety is a major concern for women using the minibus taxi system in Cape Town. Women are vulnerable to physical and sexual assault, particularly when travelling alone or at night. There have been reports of women being robbed, harassed, and even raped while using minibus taxis.
Another challenge that women face in the minibus taxi system is a lack of access to information and resources. Many women are not aware of their rights as passengers or of the services and support available to them. This can include access to emergency services or helplines or information on how to report incidents of harassment or assault.
All of these factors make it difficult for women to feel safe and secure when using public transport in Cape Town. In response to these challenges, the project “Youth engagement and skills acquisition within Africa’s transport sector: promoting a gender agenda towards transitions into meaningful work” was implemented in Cape Town (2019-2023). This action research project aimed to understand more about the vulnerability of women as both users and employees within the public transport sector, and, implement pilot projects to address these challenges.
The project team employed a multi-pronged approach, engaging female commuters and minibus taxi industry employees through skills development training, awareness campaigns, and the creation of a Safe Taxi Charter. Supported by strong local partnerships, including a gender justice non-governmental organization (NGO), academic and peer researchers, and the private sector, the project sought to foster a gender-sensitive and violence-free environment.
This article explores the impact of these interventions and highlights the potential of locally-led, interdisciplinary collaborations in driving positive change.
Click below to read the full article.
As part of the BMZ funded Professional Driver Training – Uganda 2 (PDT-U II), Transaid and Safe Way Right Way have sought to improve the gender imbalance within Uganda’s transport industry by bringing more women through professional bus and truck driver training and supporting them into employment.
Women face many obstacles in becoming professional drivers such as the prohibitive cost of training, a licence progression system that favours men, and discriminating work environments.
In this webinar we discussed the approaches taken during the programme, and highlighted the insights and learnings that were gathered.
Click below to download the webinar slides.
Public transport in sub-Saharan Africa provides an essential means for young women to access education and employment opportunities. However, the sector is highly gendered, and results in limiting access to women both as users, and as workers within the sector.
The project “Youth engagement and skills acquisition within Africa’s transport sector: promoting a gender agenda towards transitions into meaningful work”, supported by the Economic and Social Research Council,
commenced in 2019 and sought to broaden our understanding of the challenges faced by women as users of public transport, as well as employees within the public transport sector.
The pilot interventions targeting female users focused on addressing the primary concerns of women as revealed by the research. For female employees within the public transport sector, employment skills training was delivered to facilitate the advancement within their respective organisations or companies.
Click below to read the full technical brief.