The standardised curriculum and an instructor’s manual for HGV drivers are meant to facilitate safety on the roads in the wake of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).  

The two documents were launched in collaboration with Transaid, an international development organisation in the transport sector, in Accra yesterday. In attendance were stakeholders, the Deputy Minister of Transport, Frederick Obeng Adom; the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of DVLA, Kwasi Agyeman Busia; the National Coordinator of the AfCFTA, Dr Fareed Arthur, and the Director-General of the National Road Safety Authority (NRSA), David Osafo Adonteng.

Significance

The Minister of Transport, Kwaku Ofori Asiamah, in a speech delivered on his behalf, described the launch of the two documents as a major step towards ensuring safety on the country's roads and facilitation of trade with other African countries.

The speech, which was delivered by Mr Adom, said although the documents would build capacity of drivers, it would only make meaningful impact on road safety if instructions were followed religiously.

"I expect that drivers, truck owners and transport operators will embrace it as their holy book by ensuring that the manual is put to good use," he said. Mr Asiamah also urged employers to invest more in the training of their drivers. 

Timely intervention

The AfCFTA coordinator, Dr Fareed, also said that the launch of the documents was timely, because a safe transport sector was crucial to trade facilitation across African countries.

"Enhancing the capacity of our heavy goods vehicles to move across the continent is key to unlocking the trade potential across Africa, and that is why these two documents are crucial," he added.

Dr Fareed said that called for drivers to be highly skilled to enable them to strictly adhere to safety standards.

Commitment

For his part, the CEO of DVLA, Mr Busia, said they remained committed to implementing policies and initiatives that would improve the quality of drivers to ensure safety on the roads.

He said the manuals demonstrated the commitment, pride and responsibility the authority had to ensure drivers acquired the knowledge needed to operate their vehicles with the necessary skills and confidence.

"But let me be clear that this manual is not the end of a journey. It is rather a beginning of the foundation upon which we will continue to build and improve," Mr Busia added. He, however, said that the impact of the manual would best be realised when the standards were applicable to ECOWAS and the region at large.