Capacity Building for Public Transport in the Nairobi Metropolitan Area
In preparation for efficient and reliable public transport system operations, NaMATA has developed a Capacity Building Program, aimed at imparting the necessary skills for public transport operations. Supported by various partners and in furtherance to the signed MOU with Institute for Transportation and Development Policy (ITDP), the first module on Transport Planning took place from March 28th to 31st 2023. The process was facilitated by the European Union (EU) through Institutional Support for the Kenyan Transport Sector (ISKTS) program, implemented by NTU International A/S.
The capacity building targeted technical staff from NaMATA and stakeholders involved in the implementation of the Mass Rapid Transit System (MRTS) from various government and private organizations. This was to build up their knowledge on comprehensive and sustainable transport planning. Importantly, all state organs involved in the implementation of the five BRT corridors were present and fully participated. The participants were able to present, share and interrogate designs and progress on the different BRT lines. . ITDP trainers also took them through the process of assessing the BRT plans and designs, to identify any gaps on meeting design standards, and propose remedial measures to consider. Importantly, all the 5 corridors were assessed for integration and alignement, to ensure seamless operations across the full system.
Participants were drawn from NaMATA, Nairobi Metropolitan Area Counties technical staff, the Federation of the Public Transport Sector (FPTS), State Department of Transport Technical Staff, State Department of Roads Technical Staff, National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA), Kenya Urban Roads Authority (KURA), Kenya National Highways Authority (KeNHA), Engineers Board of Kenya (EBK), ITDP and the Kenya Railways Corporation (KRC).
The 4-day training ended with a certification for the over 40 participants who had gone through the training successfully. Further training modules are scheduled for implementation in the coming months, including on E-Mobility and Low-Emission Vehicles and BRT operations and management.