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newscreativity and the Iveco importer’sCEO, Rajeev Puri at Incar, fishedout a 6x4 Trakker chassis, moreaccustomed to having a tipperbody on it’s back, and popped afifth wheel on it so that trainingcould progress. It may look just alittle odd, but as a tool for trainingmanoeuvring and artic reversing,it does the job. When the customspull their finger out, there willbe a Stralis tractor to go with it.The new truck market in Tanzaniais very small. Iveco’s importerIncar only sold two chassis intheir first year of trading in 2004.Rajeev says, “It’s a measureof Iveco’s commitment to thecountry that they’ve stuck itout. Last year we sold 76 newtrucks, that’s more like it.”This figure was supported bysignificant volumes of late modelused trucks from Iveco in the UK.The used market is very strongin Tanzania, no surprise there,but Rajeev still managed to claimaround 40% of the new chassismarket over 3.5 tonnes, andover half the >16 tonne sector.“It’s mostly heavy duty trucksin this market,” he says. Heconfirmed Dar’s prime role as thefeeder port for a number of othercountries including the DemocaticRepublic of Congo (DRC), Zambiaand Somalia. Tanzania is luckythat it has good natural harbours.Trainers who are seconded hereinclude folk like Wyn Skyrme,an Audit Engineer for the FTA insouth Wales, who was half waythrough a month’s assignment.Raising standards by techniciantraining is one matter, but withoutthe enforcement to back it up, itis whistling in the wind. Wyn hasbeen busy training the Tanzanianpolice who inspect dodgy lookingvehicles for safety defects, andthere’s no shortage of them.Wyn says, “Apart from many ofthe trucks harking back to theseventies, you do need to bepragmatic here. A VOSA inspectorwould have an embolism lookingat this lot, you need to go forthe downright dangerous, thatwill keep you busy enough.”Another driver-trainer who’s beenhere for his second African stint -he’s veteran of Transaid’s Zambianproject - is Chris Hill. His ‘day job’is as a fuel tanker driver-trainer forHoyer UK at their Southamptonterminal, where he has fourteenyears of valuable experience.We found him at the NIT witha group of three students goingthrough that tricky reversingmanoeuvre that all articulatedtruck drivers must master.“Their thirst for knowledgeand their willingness to learnis quite humbling, it’s veryrewarding work,” he says.Wyn Skyrme, FTA Audit engineer from South WalesThe project manager for Transaidin Tanzania is Neil Rettie. Agentle giant of a man from theScottish Highlands, his day jobused to be a bus and coachdriver trainer for StagecoachGroup in Inverness, and they’vegenerously lent him to the charityon a full two year secondment.With previous experience gainedin Zambia, Neil is well versedin how to get things done.“You need to be realisticabout what is achievablehere,” he says, adding, “Beingpersistent and polite usuallywins through in the end.”We’re sure Neil is an excellentdriver trainer in Scotland, but wecan’t hep feeling that he’s worthhis weight in gold in Africa.Gary Forster, CEO Transaid, presents donated Stralis to Eli Mgonja from NITSuperdoll, trailer makers29Tanzania Driver Training Spread.indd 29 19/03/2012 16:42