The wheels are grinding slowly to a halt as 2011 comes to a close. For Africa's public transport, another mixed bag of hopes, raised, met and dashed in varying measure.
Political Will and Public Transport
As with every economic sector in society, public transport is a lever for driving change in society. The key thing about public transport is that it provides a platform for all other activities in society. Mobility is central to human life and the more intertwined and conflicting these become, the greater the need for high level co-ordination, high value infrastructure that meets the needs of all users. This is where political will is vital to achieving investment in public transport networks. There is evidence to affirm that many countries on the continent are gradually beginning to visualise their overall goals of prosperity through the prism of a viable, beneficial transport network. It is also becoming evident that many of the MDGs that form the crux of the African Union's NEPAD agenda require an integrated transport system.
Here is hoping that as governments cast their visions into the new year, they will acquire and retain a strong desire to build modern transport systems that will drive established and new economic activities. Of course, I expect that the some of the key frontiers in African transport investment - South Africa, Nigeria and Senegal will continue to provide leadership in this context.
Upskilling the professionals
I wish to pay tribute to the leaders of UATP, the African section of the UITP for their tireless effort to raise the human capacity in the African public transport sector. I attended a workshop in Lagos that was organised by UATP and resourced by the World Bank Transport Group. It brought together professionals from across the continent. This is the type of interventions that I expect governments to continue to put together in the new year.
The key point to note is that local public officials and local operators should be brought into the mainstream in order to ensure that they are able to interpret high level visions and deliver them for the benefit of the public.
Finally, I thank you all for following my conversations and expect to share more with you in 2011.
Best wishes and a happy new year to you in 2012.
