On 26 and 27 November 2024, Transitec took part in a workshop on active mobility organised by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) in collaboration with the Accra Metropolitan Authority (AMA) and the Transportation Growth initiative, in partnership with organisations such as UN-Habitat, High Volume Transport Applied Research, TUMI and Ochenuell Mobility. The two-day workshop took place in Accra under the theme ‘Central and West Africa on the move: paving the way for a sustainable mobility revolution’. The event was designed to expose workshop participants to the Pan-African Action Plan for Active Mobility (PAAPAM), which was launched earlier in November at the World Urban Forum in Cairo, Egypt. The Accra workshop aimed to bring together stakeholders from the Central and West African regions to prioritise investment in active mobility infrastructure and public transport solutions, ensuring that urban growth translates into safe, efficient and inclusive mobility for all.
Transitec presented an overview of an Inclusive
Transport Study, which was undertaken for the Accra Metropolitan Authority
(AMA) during the 1st quarter of 2024. This study, which was funded
by C40, considered how transport strategies identified and included by AMA in
their Climate Action Plan, could be reinforced with inclusive transport
measures through the preparation of a roadmap. Through focus group discussions
with Persons with Disability, the Elderly, Low-Income/Territorially-excluded
neighbourhoods, Women and Students/Children, key insights were obtained for the
preparation of this roadmap. Additionally, Transitec shared how through a pilot
investment project under the Ghana Urban Mobility and Accessibility Project
(GUMAP), the Otublohum-Obinini intersection in AMA would be enhanced with
cross-walks and side-walks to ease and ensure safe pedestrian movement.
Workshop participants from Abuja, Lagos, Yaoundé, Accra and Kumasi shared similar challenges and opportunities for the development of active mobility. The lively discussions throughout the workshop made it clear that a paradigm shift is needed. From 2025 onwards, UNEP, UN-Habitat and WHO will implement initial capacity-building programmes under the Pan-African Action Plan for Active Mobility (PAAPAM) framework in at least 10 countries (Ghana, Malawi, Cameroon, Morocco, Kenya, etc.).