Drivers in Zimbabwe could be required to meet minimum educational, competency and ethical standards before being licensed to work as professional dr...
HARARE – Drivers in Zimbabwe could be required to meet minimum educational, competency and ethical standards before being licensed to work as professional drivers if Parliament adopts proposals submitted by the Drivers Association of Zimbabwe.
The association has petitioned Parliament to enact legislation that would transform driving from an occupation into a regulated profession and establish a legally recognised professional body responsible for setting standards for professional drivers.
The petition was signed by association president Nicholas Mabwe, a former Zimbabwe Republic Police officer, and was delivered to Parliament Clerk Kennedy Chokuda last week.
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Speaker of the National Assembly Advocate Jacob Mudenda told legislators on Tuesday that the petition had been received and referred to the Portfolio Committee on Transport and Infrastructural Development for consideration.
“I have to inform the House that Parliament received the following petitions: a petition from the Drivers’ Association of Zimbabwe, beseeching Parliament to enact legislation that professionalises the driving occupation and transforms it into a profession with a professional association mandated by law to set entry educational qualifications,” Mudenda said.
The proposed professional body would be responsible for establishing entry requirements, ethical standards, competency requirements and disciplinary measures for drivers who fail to meet the prescribed standards.
Mabwe argues that the absence of a statutory professional body for drivers has contributed to weaknesses in the transport sector and road safety challenges.
He said the association has 15 award-winning drivers from reputable companies and organisations. Some of its members have won the Driver of the Year Competition organised by the Traffic Safety Council of Zimbabwe.
Other members, according to Mabwe, represented Zimbabwe at the World Drivers Competition organised by Scania Group in South Africa in 2012, Poland in 2014 and Finland in 2016.
Mabwe’s experience in law enforcement has also influenced his position. He spent 20 years in the Zimbabwe Republic Police, including six years in the Traffic Branch, where he encountered challenges linked to traffic management and road safety.
“Whilst there, and noticing the challenges we were facing as an organisation in taming the traffic jungle in the transport industry and performing our duties as enshrined in terms of Section 219(1), paragraphs (a) and (c), of the Constitution of Zimbabwe Amendment (No. 20) Act, 2013,” Mabwe said.
He said his subsequent research led him to conclude that driving was not sufficiently regulated as a profession in Zimbabwe.
According to Mabwe, professions such as medicine and law have statutory regulatory structures that establish professional requirements, ethical standards and disciplinary procedures, while professional driving does not have a similar framework.
The association believes professionalising driving could strengthen accountability among people employed to transport passengers and goods, particularly in the public transport, haulage and logistics sectors.
Mabwe also linked professional regulation to broader challenges in the transport industry, including road crashes, drink-driving, theft, assault, smuggling and other criminal activities.
He argued that professional drivers should receive specialised training and be required to follow a clearly defined code of conduct throughout their careers.
“Traditionally, the world over, the responsibility for road safety is placed on the individual road user,” Mabwe said, adding that road safety efforts commonly involve licensing, training, education, publicity and enforcement.
He argued that stronger professional standards could complement existing road safety measures rather than relying solely on enforcement officers.
“It is not necessarily the number of law enforcement officers on the streets that brings about traffic law enforcement, but most traffic management issues can be dealt with in the background,” he said.
The association is calling for Parliament to create a professional association with legal authority to set minimum educational qualifications, ethical standards, competency requirements and disciplinary measures.
Under the proposal, professional drivers working in the transport industry would be required to register with the proposed body. Employers would also be expected to hire drivers who meet the prescribed professional, competency and ethical requirements.
The petition comes as road safety remains an important issue for Zimbabwe’s transport sector. The association argues that better professional standards could help address some of the challenges faced by drivers and employers.
However, the proposal still has to go through Parliament’s legislative process. The Portfolio Committee on Transport and Infrastructural Development will consider the petition and is expected to engage relevant stakeholders before making recommendations to the National Assembly.
No new qualification requirements have been introduced at this stage. Any changes would depend on Parliament’s consideration of the petition and the subsequent legislative process.
