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PDTU

TRAINING WOMEN TRUCK DRIVERS FOR CHANGE : PHIONA KIBERU’S STORY

At Safe Way Right Way, our efforts are directed towards nurturing road safety cautious professional drivers generation with clinical regard to gender equality in the transport sector.

In an industry greatly dominated by male drivers, Safe Way Right Way has amplified women driver skills by offering free professional driver training to women drivers in Heavy Goods Vehicles and Buses, at our Mukono Professional Driver Training Centre.

Today, we bring to your Ms.Kiberu Phiona, a beneficiary of the above named facility and how it has catapulted her to considerable career heights to rank just among the best that there is.

Background

Ms. Kiberu Phiona, a 45-year-old mother of 2 with now over 15 years’ experience in the driving profession was one of our beneficiary students in our 2021 driver training cohort.

In a 2021 interview with the Training Centre Manager of the Safe Way Right Way Professional Driver Training School, Mr. Isaiah Ngabirano, Ms. Kiberu retorted that  she developed a love for driving from a young age and admired people that used to drive.  Against all odds, she was aggressively deliberate about turning driving into her career, She said, “For a long time, I have always wanted to do men’s jobs and most especially driving”.

Phiona’s dream and its becoming weren’t an offer on a silver platter, she recalled that the community had made her believe that truck driving belongs to men and them alone, but that just turned out to not be true and this is because currently there are fewer men who could stand to be ranked equally as Phiona is. And how is that for a change of the narrative, huh!

Contemporary Times

Phiona Kiberu  had done so many different driving jobs. She was the first Woman to drive Uber in Uganda, and she went ahead to start her own company, Allena tour and travel, albeit truck driving retained a special place in her heart. And when a friend miraculously referred her to Safe Way Right Way, her life and career took a turn.

About her experience with our team at Mukono, Phiona said “Safe Way Right Way has the best instructors in the country, they are very professional and knowledgeable about driving and what drivers go through. This is a rare opportunity for all the women out there and they should take part in this”

Ms.Kiberu has since joined the transportation department at Hima Cement (La Farge ) group Uganda where she has risen through the ranks to become a top performing woman driver at the entity. She cautiously, efficiently and professionally drives Heavy Goods vehicles for hundreds of kilometres as her contribution to her employer and to the country at large.

Phiona has been awarded by Hima Cement (Larfarge Group) as the best female truck driver at the company. Safe Way Right Way too, was awarded in recognition for championing the Women on Wheels that has nurtured female drivers in the developing Ugandan Market.

All in All.

You too, can realise your dream! Be sure to get in touch with the Safe Way Right Way  Professional Driver Training School-Mukono. 

Safe Way Right Way is committed to the professionalising of driving in Uganda and in the region at large through providing quality training based on the East African Standardised Curriculum.

This training is made possible by Safe Way Right Way and its private sector partners, TotalEnergies MS Uganda Ltd, Total E&P Uganda Ltd CFAO Motors, AGL, GP Advocates,The Motor Center East Africa , Reef Industries.

 

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Professional Driver Training Uganda (PDTU)

The Professional Driver Training Uganda (PDTU) Project by Safe Way Right Way (SWRW)
is here to see to it that you benefit the most from your driving career while keeping other road
users simultaneously safe. This project which commenced in 2017 has hitherto aimed at
building capacity for Heavy Goods Vehicles (HGV) and Passenger Service Vehicles drivers
through subsidised HGV Driving Training.


Safe Way Right Way (SWRW) through this project seeks to both nurture a unique generation
of road safety cautious professional drivers ready to tap into the Professional commercial
Driving market in the oil and gas infrastructure projects that will be the result of oil extraction
in the Albertine region by 2025.


Our training ranges from Medium Trick driving (C), Heavy Truck Driving (CE) and Bus
Driving (DE) licences under the strict observance of the East African Community
Standardised Curriculum. All this action takes place from our spacious and well equipped
training School at Mukono.


SWRW is (has been) very keen to change the narrative in the transportation industry by
empowering women drivers as a measure for implementing gender inclusivity. We have so
far trained a total number of 1551 drivers out of which 131 are women. There is a record of
success stories and testimonies to the amplification that this training has had on several
Drivers’ careers.


This, therefore, is a clarion call to the drivers interested in Heavy Goods Vehicle Training to
secure their admission into one of our intake so that you get to be part of a Road Safety
cautious generation that is being prepared to be the drivers of the region into prosperity.
For more information, please contact 256-702-745-745 or reach us through any of our social media
channels.

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PDTU FAQ

What is the Professional Driver Training Uganda (PDTU) project?

The Professional Driver Training Uganda (PDTU) project was launched in July 2017. It is an initiative aimed at building the capacity of Heavy Goods Vehicles and Passenger Service Vehicles;

The project is implemented by GIZ E4D/SOGA – Employment and Skills for Eastern Africa, Safe Way Right Way and Transaid with support from industry partners, and in partnership with the Ugandan Government;

It is funded by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), the UK Department for International Development (DFID) and the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (NORAD).

The PDTU project has three main objectives: [/paragraph]

    • To train Ugandan drivers in C (medium trucks), CE (heavy trucks) and DH (buses) class licenses under the East African Community standardized curriculum.
    • To increase the number of skilled drivers for Heavy Goods Vehicles and Passenger Service Vehicles;
    • To improve road safety in the country.

Who is the training targeting?

  • The training aims to upgrade the skills of drivers wishing to drive Passenger Service Vehicles and Heavy Goods Vehicles.


What are the minimum qualifications required for drivers to be admitted for the training?  

  • A person who wishes to extend his or her driving permit to cover an additional group of motor vehicle shall meet the following requirements:- For an extension from group B motor vehicles (cars) to group C motor vehicles (medium trucks), the driver shall have held a driving permit for group B motor vehicles for a period of not less than one year, and shall be at least twenty five years of age;
  • For an extension from group C motor vehicles (medium trucks) to group CE motor vehicles (heavy trucks), the driver shall have held a driving permit for group C motor vehicles for a period of not less than one year, and shall be at least twenty five years of age.
  • For an extension from group C or D motor vehicles (medium trucks and minibuses) to group DE motor vehicles (buses), the driver shall have held a driving permit for group C or D motor vehicles for a period of not less than one year, and shall be at least thirty years of age.

What are the benefits of the training?

  • The PDTU project is a strategic intervention aimed at responding to anticipated high and increasing demand for qualified commercial drivers in Uganda in coming years. It is envisaged that transport and logistics companies serving oil and gas infrastructure projects and other large scale investments will hire over 2000 new drivers. Benefits of the training will include:
      • Increased skills
      • Increased employability
      • Opportunity for higher pay
      • Job progression/promotion


Will drivers who hold East African Community permits be considered eligible? 

  • For license acquisition, they would need to hold a valid Uganda license. For just undergoing training then any license valid for use in Uganda would be acceptable. However, the 50% discount is reserved for Ugandan nationals.

Will it be possible to help the drivers process the next license? 

The training is in itself a step in the process of driver license extension. However, to actually obtain the license, a successfully trained driver will have to go through the official and regular procedures as provided for in Uganda’s policies and regulation.


What are the costs involved? 

  • The training cost for individuals is UGX 1,000,000 for a three weeks training, however currently we are offering a 50% discount.
  • Training for corporate clients is available on demand and can be tailored according to the clients’ needs. Costs may vary according to the required services, number of individuals trained, duration of training and provision of training vehicles and materials.
  • Women are currently being trained for free.


Where should the payments be done? 

  • All payments will be done in the bank. Please contact Safe Way Right Way directly for bank details

Is it possible to do part payments? 

  • Yes – Payments can be made in installments in advance and paid into the bank account. Once the total amount has been paid the driver is eligible to participate in the training


If a driver has all the classes of the license and has been driving trucks and just needs a certificate, will there be a reduced price? 

  • No, but the training will be suitable for someone with the license but with limited experience.


How long will the training last? 

  • The training for every batch of drivers that is registered will last for up to three weeks (Monday to Friday). This, however, could go on longer if a driver does not pass tests administered to the required standards. Extra costs for extended training will depend on additional time and requirements.

How can one join the program? 

  • Contact 0702 745 745 or email us on info@safewayrightwayug.org


 

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