“I feel cool when I ride” … — talking to Boda Boda riders about their lives

Boda bodas, the motorbike taxis in Uganda, are an important lifeline in the public transportation network and a perspective for the future for young men. For the authorities, they often represent a nuisance that is to be fought by means of regulations. The drivers strike back — and find new business models.

The Boda Boda Book is now on Kickstarter. Here is what the story is about …

The gaps between commercial trucks and fully-packed minibuses are becoming smaller. Traffic is slow-moving at the crossing, but it is unstoppable. Pedestrians push into the streets; standing still is not an option here. “There’s no way we will fit,” thinks the traveller who has no other option but to press his knees tightly against the seat, making himself small and holding his breath. “Of course we will fit.” Marabous, the large carrion feeders that look like overweight storks with a double chin, circle above the city, sometimes sitting and relaxing by the side of the road. And then, as if by magic, everyone does have enough space; a sigh of relief until we reach the next crossing or the next lot of potholes in the road.

Boda Boda — motorbikes as a perspective for the future

Around 300,000 motorbike taxis, called boda bodas, travel the streets of Uganda, almost 40,000 of them in the capital Kampala alone. For travellers, a trip through the dense rush hour of the capital is an adventure; for locals it is necessary for everyday survival. Local transport is one of the greatest challenges for Africa’s rapidly growing cities. Public transport is rare and expensive, cars are practically unaffordable and collective taxis aren’t really compatible with a fixed schedule. They leave only once they are full and if too many passengers get out along the way, the driver may take a break of unknown duration in order to wait for more passengers. Petrol is expensive, after all, and the drive needs to be worthwhile.

Boda bodas are an important alternative here. Not only do they offer a mode of transport, but this business also offers an economic perspective to young men in particular. The authorities, especially in Kampala, do not share this opinion, however: they want to eliminate the numerous motorbikes from the city centre. On the one hand, to reduce the risk of accidents and to ensure a modern, clean and calm urban image and, on the other hand, because they question whether this makes sense as an economic development. The motorbikes, so goes the argument, do not create jobs — except for their owners.

However, figures by Kampala University show: up to two million people — when family members are included — are economically dependant on the boda boda system. Not least due to this power, which is also political, attempts to curb the increase of motorbikes or to at least tax them have failed thus far.

Uncontrollable rebels or business men after all?

The image of the wild guy is propagated from other sides, too: Uganda’s President Museveni likes to surround himself with boda boda escorts. A few hundred clattering engines transform boring political processions into spectacles. And the President does not fail to show his gratitude: when the city administration of Kampala recently made plans to regulate the boda business and tax the drivers, the President vetoed this course of action.

Some boda boda organisations are now working towards creating new images of the Ugandan bike culture. They speak of safety through trained and tested drivers, they organise the market by means of self-imposed access control, fixed price ranges and mutual social control.

“We accept new drivers only with a letter of recommendation,” says Emmanuel Nsereko, Chairman of the Entebbe division of the Boda Boda Association. “Then we have a trial period, during which the driver must prove himself. Only then does a new driver get his permit.” Drivers pay a one-time membership fee, which flows mainly into a kind of insurance fund: in case of illness or accidents, drivers receive aid from this fund to support them.

Accidents are not a rarity and are often accompanied with bloody images in the Ugandan media. In a study, the Mulago Hospital in Kampala held boda bodas responsible for a quarter of all traffic accidents involving damage to a person. The greatest factors of risk — besides the fact that the drivers are almost exclusively young and male — are bad roads and a lack of training. A driver’s license is not necessary in Uganda. Even for commercial use, a motorbike and a third-party vehicle insurance are entirely sufficient.

Pimp my standard motorbike

The motorbikes are usually Boxer models. With just 15 horsepower, they are real behemoths: weighing in at 250 kilos, they are twice as heavy as comparable bikes in Europe from common makers. But they fulfil their purpose.

“A Boxer,” says Darias after a thoughtful pause when asked which bike he would buy if money were no issue. Darias works in a small workshop in a tiny town on the shores of Lake Victoria. Small repairs, oil changes and especially the colourful extra equipment are the workshop’s main line of business. Seat covers in leopard or Louis Vuitton print, colourfully painted protective shields for the headlights and small tin signs that express what is important to the driver are part of the basic equipment of every boda boda driver. The tin signs often carry religious messages: “Jesus cares,” “God has mercy” or references to famous Bible quotes as well the occasional football reference are common.

“Of course the bikes have to run well, but their appearance is also important,” says Darias. “With a good-looking bike, you just get more customers.”

Derrick Asiimwe also relies on this. The 24-year-old has been driving for three years. His bike is covered with Nelson Mandela stickers, stickers of Ugandan TV stars, a large plastic flower and a Rwandan flag. “I’m from Rwanda, and many travellers from Rwanda then think: hey, I’d rather give my money to the Rwandan boy.” A small tin sign underneath the headlight references Psalm John 11:26: “… and whoever lives by believing in me will never die.”

Derrick makes up to 50,000 Uganda-Schillings per day — this converts to around thirteen euros. This is a good income in a country that defines its middle class by an income of between two and twenty dollars a day.

Derrick is saving as much as he can in order to one day buy a small shop in the port area. He wants to give this shop to his fiancée as a gift — he just has to find a fiancée first. Thanks to the ferries that regularly enter the port of this small town, the motorbike business is going more successfully than the search for a partner.

Nothing moves in Kampala without bodas

Boda boda drivers earn more than six times the average Ugandan income. Most even have enough left over to be able to save up.

This attracts new drivers constantly. In Kampala, too, at practically any time of day on every corner of the city, a boda driver will appear within minutes. Just stand by the side of the road and wave — this works better than calling to order transport in advance.

Boda bodas are one of the most important lifelines in this city of millions. They solve a problem that even the World Bank identified as one of the biggest challenges for cities in sub-Saharan Africa in a recent study. In these rapidly growing cities, there are not many options for travelling great distances. Many city residents thus travel mainly on foot — which not only limits their daily movements but also their choice of job location. If a job cannot be reached on foot, it becomes instantly less attractive — the costs of transport are simply too high. Job seekers are therefore unable to accept a lot of jobs and employers have more difficulty filling vacant positions. This is a problem that also affects the cost of goods: anything that has to be transported is expensive — not just due to import taxes and currency fluctuations but also because great distances and bad roads cause transportation costs to skyrocket.

Public transport in Uganda began to crumble when the transport system was privatised to the benefit of party colleagues of the President. The postal busses that still run according to fixed schedules are remnants of better times. In other bus or taxi systems, the passengers are at the mercy of the operator’s mood when it comes to departure times and stops along the way.

Boda boda as an economic factor

Motorbikes are therefore all the more important — as a functioning mode of transport in daily life and as an economic factor. Many drivers have economic ambitions.

Ibrahim Kakooza made the change from construction to the boda bike. The Manchester United fan has only been driving for a year, but is already making plans for a second bike. As soon as his finances allow, he wants to buy a second Boxer. Another driver could then rent it from him or pay by instalments. This is a business model that, to date, was the reserve of wealthy Ugandans. Because even the cheap Indian bikes still cost the equivalent of over 1,000 euros. “I earn more now than I did in construction,” says Ibrahim. “Driving is fun — but I don’t want to be doing this forever.”

He is not alone in this: in a survey by Kampala University, most drivers stated that they did not want to do this job for life. Many of them had been driving for over ten years, however. The above-average income allowed them to put some money aside and pay for their children’s education. This was important to all drivers surveyed: they all send their children to school — some of them even to university.

Owen Turyahabwe has four children and two women to provide for with one motorbike. The Kanungu Kihihi Express is already his fourth bike, and he has been riding for over ten years, too. “It comes by nature,” he replies when asked what made him start driving. “I just like to ride.” Owen is one of the most experienced riders in Nakiwogo, the port area of Entebbe. Twice a day, the ferry docks here, arriving from Kalangala, an island in Lake Victoria around three hours away by ship. The ship passengers bring good business and Entebbe is a comfortable terrain for drivers. “Maybe there is even more business in Kampala — but also more drivers and more competition,” says Owen.

Despite all efforts towards a serious image, rivalling organisations are often at odds with one another. This can sometimes end in physical violence. In Entebbe, Emmanuel Mugabi Nsereko seems to have a tight grasp on the business with his association. Even the travel prices — as compared to Kampala — are pretty standardised here. This goes for tourists, too: while in other places 30 to 50 percent of the initial price offer is a realistic goal, haggling with drivers in Entebbe is futile. They know their price and they stick to it.

Taxi drivers, couriers, emergency services

Geoffrey Mawanda is one of the drivers who cannot yet afford his own bike. Every month he pays instalments to this boss, who has fifteen drivers on the road. In order to gain more business, Geoffrey not only works as a taxi driver but also takes on courier and delivery jobs. He uses the ferry almost daily and delivers goods to the small shops in the port and tourist areas — usually packed into big bin bags that are draped across the handlebars and the gas tank.

In addition to the extra income, there is another reason why Geoffrey prefers not having passengers on his back seat all the time: “You never know who you are driving. It happens from time to time that someone gets on your bike, has you drive somewhere and then doesn’t pay — or tries to rob you.” Courier and even emergency driving are common second jobs for boda boda drivers, which highlights the importance of these bikes once again. Geoffrey will have to pay instalments for his bike for another two years.

“I love my customers and they love me” — Kennedy Ukurmiwiwu, on the other hand, is a real ray of sunshine. When taking a break, the 24-year-old lounges on his bike, waves to potential customers, and likes to talk and laugh a lot. The gas tank of this bike is decorated with tiger stickers, a Che Guevara sticker (even though he doesn’t recognise the name) and stickers of Ugandan TV stars. Instead of motorcycle boots he wears Wellington boots. Kennedy began his biker career straight out of school and does not have other plans at the moment — “I feel cool when I ride.”

In the lively port city of Entebbe, one does not have a sense of conflicts between drivers, repression by police or less trustworthy drivers. “The wild stories are mainly from the past,” explains Association Chairman Emmanuel. “But these issues are not entirely a thing of the past.”

Business models with a future

In other places, the bikes have already advanced a step further into the future. “Solomon, like the guy in the Bible,” Solomon Busobozi introduces himself to his passengers. “What I like about him, is that he was rich. I don’t like so much that he had so many wives.” Solomon is a business man. The former boda boda driver now organises city tours on boda bodas in Kampala and is driver and tour guide rolled into one. All participants wear helmets and his driving is extremely careful. On the side, Solomon also does courier jobs and organises driving safety training courses, which all drivers must complete if they want to work as substitutes for him occasionally when larger groups book tours.

His biker days are over. “Now I have a business. And safety is the most important measure of quality for any company.” On his Facebook page, helmets are the most frequent photo images, with which he tries to convince even cautious tourists.

Safe Boda is a big safety initiative in the capital of Uganda. With the help of international sponsors and advisors, safety training courses are organised, high visibility vests and helmets are distributed to drivers and first aid courses are held. Safe Boda goes a step further than other organisations that try to convince drivers to participate in safety training via their bosses in the associations or by reasoning with them. The trained drivers can be booked via a special smartphone app at specific rates. Safety for both sides thus becomes a convincing business argument. Founder Rick Thomson, a former bouncer, is already planning the Uganda-wide roll-out — and also in other East African cities that are battling similar transportation problems.

The Boda Boda Book is now on Kickstarter. Publication is scheduled for March 2018.