Government to train 50,000 boda boda cyclists

The Ministry of Works and Transport in partnership with Kampala Capital City Authority (KCCA) and police have embarked on a six-week training of more than 50,000 boda boda cyclists starting on Monday.
Under the arrangement, all the riders will be required to pay Shs60,000 to be trained in the selected nine driving schools.

“The riders will be trained on traffic laws, highway codes (traffic signals junction boxes, driving on urban roads and highways, fines, and offences, interpreting the signals), riding skills, health and safety and customer care, which will include price negotiations, client presentation, savings, mobilisation and investment, and crime prevention,” Mr Karim Kibuuka, the principal vehicle inspector at the Works ministry, said yesterday.
The training is aimed at curbing road accidents in the Kampala Metropolitan area. According to police reports, boda bodas are one of the major causes of accidents in the country, with at least four people dying due to motorcycle-related accidents daily.

While addressing journalists at the Uganda Media Centre in Kampala yesterday, the State Minister for Kampala City, Mr Kabuye Kyofatogabye, said they have already trained 10,500 riders, and will now proceed to the inspector of vehicles for evaluation.
“After the training and competence certification, Kampala Capital City Authority will fully register riders to operate in the city. This will also address the security aspect because everyone operating in Kampala will have a known identity,”  Mr Kyofatogabye said.

“Police have indicated that the insecurity in the city is largely driven by boda bodas who can show up without notice and disappear quickly,” he added.
According to KCCA, out of the 60,000 boda cyclists in Kampala, only 157 meet all the requirements to operate public transport. These include possessing a driving permit, insurance, and logbooks. 
Mr Kyofatogabye also observed that the death rate of productive Ugandans due to boda boda accidents is more than 50 percent.He added the city mortuary receives up to 40 bodies per week from boda boda-related accidents in Kampala.

The minister said those who will not turn up for the training will be stopped from operating from Kampala.
The police have been impounding boda bodas whose riders do not have reflector jackets, helmets and PSV permits. More than 6,000 boda bodas were impounded last month.

Reaction

Richard Musoke, boda boda rider at Jinja stage: “The Boda boda industry has become an expensive profession. First, they started with a helmet and reflector jacket. They are now asking us to attend trainings, which are not free. Let KCCA be clear that they don’t want us in Kampala.”