The bodaboda training programme is an education campaign of the Automobile Association of Tanzania (AAT), aimed at 1,000 bodaboda motorcyclists and three wheelers (local taxi drivers) in Dar es Salaam. The programme aims to reduce road accidents in the country through the training of 1,000 riders in the Coast region of Kibaha. In addition to the training, the progamme also distributed 20,000 fluorescent stickers among boda boda riders for greater visibility. 

There are more than 20,000 unlicensed riders in Dar es Salaam and the major cause of accidents is a lack of training and awareness. But the bodaboda training programme is set to change that. Yusuf Ghor, Chairman of the AAT, said “So far the response from the riders has been overwhelming and we expect a good outcome. Road safety training initiatives have been deployed by AAT since 2013, and so far over 4,000 motorcyclists have been trained in Dar es Salaam alone.” 

The trainings are carried out with the support of the Tanzania Traffic Police Headquarters education unit and the Kibaha Regional Traffic Police. Statistics show that bodaboda accidents in Dar es Salaam region decreased last year by 36% as a result of various road safety training initiatives.

Nevertheless 87% riders in Dar es Salaam remain unlicensed. This is why the Automobile Association of Tanzania has been requested by the Tanzanian Government, National Road Safety Council of Tanzania, Boda Boda Riders Association and Members of Electronic Media, to continue this project. In the course of the Boda Boda Training Phase 3, approximately 10 groups of 100 motorcyclists have been trained in both the theory of road safety and the riding practice during workshops over 10-15 days.