International development organisation Transaid has received a training vehicle from Samworth Brothers Supply Chain, which will help meet the growing demand for qualified HGV drivers in Uganda.

This is the first pledge of support from Samworth Brothers Supply Chain to Transaid and the MAN TGX truck has been shipped more than 6,000 miles to become a dedicated training vehicle for the Professional Driver Training – Uganda (PDT-U) project.

The PDT-U training school has opened its doors to the first group of drivers, with over 4,000 people expressing their interest in being trained during the recent media campaign. Already, the first 52 trainees have completed the project’s license acquisition training course.

“We anticipate a massive demand for high quality professional driver training in Uganda and we are so thrilled to welcome each new driver that expresses an interest in training with the PDT-U school,” said Neil Rettie, Transaid Road Safety Project Manager.

“The benefits for the transport industry in Uganda from the PDT-U school truly shows how much of an impact Transaid’s Professional Driver Training projects are having in sub-Saharan Africa and how important this cause is to communities. The Uganda initiative was officially launched in 2017, and already the support it has received in the form of vehicle donations has been excellent,” Neil added.

The MAN truck follows in the tracks of a similarly specified Volvo FH tractor unit donated by Transaid’s corporate member, Volvo Trucks. They will both be used in Uganda to haul a platform trailer – donated by W H Malcolm – loaded with an empty container for the driver training. With the two second-hand vehicles and trailer received, Transaid can effectively double the amount of people that can be trained in a given period.

The PDT-U project is one of Transaid’s largest professional driver training initiatives and builds the capacity of heavy goods vehicle (HGV) and passenger service vehicle (PSV) driver training in Uganda. Since 2008, Transaid has been working with local and international partners to build the capacity of the transport and logistics sector across sub-Saharan Africa.

The project has been secured in partnership with the German development cooperation’s GIZ E4D/SOGA – Employment and Skills for Eastern Africa, local non-governmental organisation – Safe Way Right Way, the Ugandan Government and the local private sector.