[sustran] MOBILIZING AFRICA #2

[mobility]

MOBILIZING AFRICA

        A Bi-Weekly Bulletin from ITDP and
        Africa Sustainable Transport (SusTran) Advocates

        =============================================================
        Electronic Edition Number 2            July 27, 2001
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                         HEADLINES
        ==============================================================
        * OVERHEARD IN THE CORRIDORS OF POWER
        * NIGERIA’S ANTIDOTE TO MERCEDES “WABENZI”

        * THE RIGHT TOOL FOR THE JOB: BOOSTING BIKE
                DEALERS AT THE ACCRA BIKE MARKET (PT I)

        * MAINSTREAMING LOW-COST MOBILITY IN TANZANIA
        * RWANDAN “BONESHAKERS” VITAL TO ECONOMY, MARRIAGE
        * 30 CYCLISTS ARRESTED IN UGANDA BODA BODA PROTEST
        ==============================================================

** To learn more about ITDP visit http://www.itdp.org

*** To submit your articles to Mobilizing Africa, or to (un)subscribe:
steely at igc.org

**** CORRECTION:  To contact Tom Opiyo, an architect of Nairobi’s
                        emerging bicycle network: otopiyo at yahoo.com

                        *       *       *

OVERHEARD IN THE CORRIDORS OF POWER

“
Road construction no longer takes care of anyone else except the car
users. There used to be pedestrian crossings and walkways on the sides.
But
these days, we have one gutter to another. That's not right
the elites
have
imbibed the wrong concept of luxury. And of course being well to do,
they
have abandoned simplicity.”

--Dr. Okey Okechukwu, a renowned journalist and Special Assistant to the

Nigerian Minister of Transport, Chief Ojo Maduekwe

                 *       *       *

NIGERIA’S ANTIDOTE TO MERCEDES “WABENZI”


Nigerian Transport Minister, Chief Ojo Maduekwe, is emerging as one of
Africa’s most vocal proponents of cycling.

In a refreshing departure from the “Wabenzi” (a local colloquial term
for
African civil servants who travel in Mercedes Benzes) Maduekwe and his
staff
can regularly be seen pedaling through the streets of Abuja en route to
meetings, with their formal clothes and papers strapped to their rear
carriers.

Maduekwe maintains that Nigerians should embrace cycling as a partial
solution to growing gridlock that is crippling Nigeria’s economy.  His
zeal
for cycling is neither diminished by naysayers who accuse him of pursing

quixotic ends, nor by bad weather, as he recently cycled through a
torrential downpour on his way to a cabinet meeting. "Rain doctors did
their
worst, I defied them. In this business, rain does not really matter,"
said
Maduekwe.

In June, Maduekwe was even hit by a bus and into a ditch while cycling
to
work.  This only led him to redouble his efforts to establish bicycle
route
networks in Abuja and Lagos.

Adapted from articles printed in The Vanguard:  www.vanguardngr.com


                 *       *       *


BOOSTING BIKE DEALERS AT THE ACCRA BICYCLE MARKET (Pt. I)

Through the introduction of specialty bicycle tools, skills training,
small
loans, and community outreach and marketing, bicycle dealers in Ghana
are
increasing their profits.

When Ghana eliminated the tax and tariff on the importation of bicycles
in
1989, the Accra Bicycle Market only housed a handful of small bike
dealers.
Today the market is an informal gathering of scores of used bicycle
dealers,
attracting buyers from all over Ghana, and from neighboring Cote d’
Ivoire,
Burkina Faso, Togo, Benin, and Niger.

The Tens of thousands of used bicycles per year that are sold here are
imported from Europe and North America.  Most dealers buy several
bicycles
at a time from the importers, then fix them up and resell them to
individuals and other dealers at a small profit.

The Right Tool for the Job

Until recently, dealers, lacking specialty bicycle tools, refurbished
used
bicycles with hammers, chisels, and nails.  In March 2000, ITDP and
Village
Bicycle Project started the “Specialty Bike Tools Program” with support
from
Park Tool USA, a Minnesota based tools manufacturer.

At first the dealers were wary to pay for tools, as many had never even
seen
freewheel removers, chain breakers, chain pullers, and pin spanners,
much
less used one.  To surmount this initial obstacle, about $1,000 worth of

tools was made available to dealers at a special introductory price.
Still,
only a handful of dealers and mechanics showed interest; only five out
of
the Accra Bicycle Markets’ 25 main dealers bought tools.  One dealer who
did
show interest was George Kofi Aidoo, the proprietor of Geofaido
Enterprises.

“These tools help my business very much,” said George.  “It was very
difficult to rebuild a rear wheel before, you usually would break the
free
[freewheel] before it would come off
a new free [freewheel] costs 22,000

Cedis [US $4].  I use the free remover twice and it is paid for.”

Samson Ayine is another bicycle dealer who has benefited from the tools
program. “I used to have to throw them [wheels] away or sell broken
wheels
for small money.  Now I can make them like new again
we still have not
enough rear wheels, but not like before.”

After the value of the tools began to be recognized, the prices of the
second tranche of tools were raised to market value in March 2001.
These
tools were sold mostly by Mr. Aidoo, who purchased the tools from ITDP
with
60 days terms.  Though demand had dropped off a bit due to the increased

price, all the tools were sold and Mr. Aidoo was able to repay the cost
of
the tools and make a tidy profit.  Now George wants to import increasing

amounts of specialty bicycle tools, and meet increasing demand from
dealers
throughout West Africa who come to the Accra Bicycle Market.  ITDP is
linking George with suppliers in Asia, and providing financing so that
George can import increasing quantities of specialty bicycle tools.
(continued in next issue)


                 *       *       *


MAINSTREAMING LOW COST MOBILITY IN TANZANIA

Mainstreaming is one of the priority issues of Association for Advancing
Low
Cost Mobility- AALOCOM. From June 2001 AALOCOM is set to influence
inclusion
of LCM facilities in one of the country’s secondary cities: Shinyanga
Municipality.

Shinyanga Municipality is located in the central part of Tanzania
occupying
approximately 548 square kilometers out of which 25 square kilometers
are
proper urban and the rest urban rural. The Municipality with a
population of
approximately 150,000 inhabitants is preparing its first Strategic Urban

Development Plan. Municipal consultative held Mid July 2001 identified
Managing LCM/NMT as one of the key environmental issues. AALOCOM intends
to
support residents to protect the Municipality from vehicle dominancy;
fortunately one of its members is a member of the Coordinating Team
(Ministry of Lands and Human Settlements).

Preliminary findings reveal that LCM is the most dependable means of
transport in the Municipality. Majority of people move from one place to

another by walking or cycling. The use of pushcarts and ox- cart is also

common particularly for transporting goods. Studies to establish
composition
of LCM users in the Municipality are yet to be done.

However, ocular surveys show that pedestrians constitute about 70% of
all
road users in the Municipality. Cycling is another common and most
dependable mode for longer distances although safety of cyclists is not
guaranteed because the existing roads have been paved with no regard to
LCM
users. It is estimated that the Municipality has about 50,000 bicycles.

By: AALOCOM Tanzania


                 *       *       *


BONESHAKER SCOOTERS ARE RWANDAN BOYS’ BEST FRIEND

GATARAGA, Rwanda, July 16 (Reuters) - What moves like lightning, costs
almost nothing and may help you find a wife?

In the hillside villages of the tiny central African country of Rwanda,
a
growing army of ramshackle wooden scooters are turning out to be a boy's

best friend.

Whizzing downhill at hair-raising speeds, the two-wheeled mean machines
Whisk huge sacks of produce to market, earning a tidy sum for their
teenage
owners and providing a homemade solution to a transport problem common
across the continent.

"It's like an aero plane," said 14-year-old Emmanuel Bizimana, posing
with
his "steed" on a grassy verge near the tiny hamlet of Gataraga. "When
I'm
driving without any baggage not even a car can catch up with me."

There is only one flaw. "I have to push it on the way back, because it
has
no engine," he said.

Hundreds of riders career downhill on market days, sending passers-by
scurrying out of the way as they zip along roads snaking through the
lush
foothills of the colossal Virunga volcano chain in the fertile
northeast.

The ingenious devices are not only lots of fun, but one of the few ways
for
young landless men to scratch a living and a means of transport that
plays
an important role in feeding a burgeoning population in areas too poor
to
afford trucks.

BONESHAKERS

Known as "Igicugutu" in Rwandan, which can be loosely translated as
"boneshaker," the scooters may be a little bumpy, but they are
masterpieces
of improvised engineering.

Riders stand on a heavy plank resting on two wooden wheels coated in
rubber
treads, steering with handlebars as wide as the horns of the cattle
browsing
amid the banana groves.

Fortunately for pedestrians, owners add a brake fashioned from a piece
of
tyre that rests loosely over the rear wheel until pressed with the back
foot, causing the scooter, hopefully, to grind to a halt.

Most machines are simply nailed together out of pieces of wood, but
ambitious designers use ball bearings to reduce axle friction and
increase
speed, while some add bicycle bells and perhaps a lick of go-faster
paint.

"When you see the boy active like this, there's no way you can't feel
proud," said 60-year-old Madeleine Gicakara, as her 15-year-old son
Theogene
saddled up sacks of sorghum, used to brew beer, in Gataraga.

"Instead of becoming robbers or pickpockets, boys spend some time making
a
scooter to earn money honestly," she said.

Theogene's father is dead, so like many riders he is a key breadwinner
for
his 11 brothers and sisters and their mother, who said she was too old
to
farm.

FARMERS' DELIGHT

The exact origins of the scooters are unclear, but locals said they
first
appeared in the 1960s and have expanded into an important part of
village
life in the last few years.

Farmers pay owners to carry more than 100 kg (221 lb) of vegetables in
one
go, allowing more efficient delivery in one of Africa's most
densely-populated countries where food supplies can be finely balanced.

"There are thousands and thousands of people whose life has been
improved
because of the work done by these scooters," said 45-year-old farmer
Pierre
Nyangabose, as boys cruised past on a flat stretch of road.

Inevitably, scooters do sometimes end up on the wrong side of the
minibuses
and lorries that speed down the winding routes, and forlorn young men
can
occasionally be seen trudging uphill with a crippled machine draped
across a
wheelbarrow.

Serious injuries are rare, although farmers spoke of a fatal scooter
crash
near Gataraga in February when a heavily-laden rider smashed into
another
and crushed him to death.

A short ride down the road in the town of Ruhengeri, the market is
bursting
with tomatoes, beans and maize delivered in the early morning by boys
from
the villages.

"Without the scooters the people in the town would die of hunger and the

farmers would not make any money," said cabbage seller Eliza
Mujawamariya,
speaking above the hubbub of the vegetable section of the covered
market.

Nodding agreement, her friend Mama Nadia said that in the villages a
scooter-less suitor may be hard-pressed to woo a wife.

"We definitely would want someone with a scooter," she said. "We cannot
marry a man who cannot feed us."


                 *       *       *


30 CYCLISTS ARRESTED IN UGANDA BODA BODA PROTEST

The fight raged for about 30 minutes before the police gunpower subdued
the
boda boda stone-throwers. The riots began when the cyclists stormed the
streets in large numbers protesting against what they say is unfair
taxation
by Mbale municipal council. The cyclists have been on strike for two
months
demanding to pay Shs 100 in taxes daily instead of Shs 200 levied by the

Municipal Council. They have been operating without seat cushions on
their
bicycles.

The main battles took place in the town center and along Pallisa Road
where
a combined force of Municipal law enforcement officers and police met
the
boda boda, reinforced by Jua Kali artisans.

The Monitor saw the District Police Commander, Oire Eyagu and his OC CID

Marcellino Wanitho pelted with stones. Wanitho took cover in a tree as
the
police fired in the air.

Over 30 cyclists were arrested and bundled in trucks to Mbale central
police
station.

Oire said the police was forced to act because the cyclists had gone on
rampage, beating law enforcement officers and damaging people's
property.
"They even beat up the OC Malukhu Prisons Mr. Enatu because they found
him
being carried on a bicycle. That is bad," Oire said.

When contacted about the strike, Mbale town clerk, Fred Jabi Bukeni said
the
cyclists were placing unrealistic demands to council. He said at first
they
were complaining against the extra-judicious punishment by Universal Co.

which runs the tender to collect taxes and the council stopped the
tender.
"We put our own people to collect revenue but they are now beating them
also. They have not told us what they want," he said.

Bukeni says the boda boda men wanted to collect revenue themselves but
their
application has to go through the normal procedure. During the riot they

stormed Mbale Municipal council offices and later attacked Mbale
Municipal
court offices on Kumi road, and destroyed property including vehicles
parked
there.

The Monitor   (Kampala) July 19, 2001

 ---------------------------------------------------------

                         * CALENDAR *

Convención Internacional Transporte 2001
Conference dates and venue: September 17-21, 2001, La Habana, Cuba.
Contact: Huberto Valdés Riios, Secretario Ejectivo, Convención
Internacional
Transporte 2001, Grupo IT, Cuba. Tel: 537 62-3051/58 ext.230, Fax:537
33-8250, Email: iitransport at transnet.cu


Velo City Conference 2001
Conference dates and venue: September 17-21 2001, Glasgow & Edinburgh,
United Kingdom.
Contact: Organisers Email: velo_city at meetingmakers.co.uk, Website:
http://www.velo_city2001.org


PABIC Pan African Bicycle Conference
Conference dates and venue: 21-25 November 2001, Conference Centre
Jinja,
Uganda.
Contact: FABIO, First African Bicycle Information Office, Jinja Uganda,
PO
Box 1537 Jinja, Uganda. Email:fabio at source.co.ug



*       *       *


NEXT ISSUE:

* HIV/AIDS OUTREACH GETS BIG BOOST FROM BIKES
* A NEW BICYCLE FOR AFRICA?
* CYCLING: COST EFFECTIVE REMEDY FOR GLOBAL WARMING?
* BOOSTING BIKE DEALERS AT THE ACCRA BIKE MARKET, PT II



MOBILIZING AFRICA


 ----------------------------------------------------------
 MA#2
 Editor:  Paul S. White   steely at igc.org

 ----------------------------------------------------------
 Institute for Transportation and Development Policy (ITDP)
 115 West 30th Street, New York, NY 10001
 tel. (212) 629-8001   fax (212) 629-8033   mobility at igc.org



Paul Steely White
Director, Africa Programs
Institute for Transportation
& Development Policy (ITDP)

115 W. 30th St. Suite 1205,
New York, NY 10001
Tel +212 629 8001, Fax -8033,
www.ITDP.org