The Truck Training Schools Association of Ontario (TTSAO) would like to train Ugandans either here in Canada or send a trainer to the East African country to help improve safety and compliance.

“We will have no financial involvement with this whatsoever,” Philip Fletcher, TTSAO president told TruckNews.com after an East Africa Project presentation on truck driver training was made during the association’s annual conference in Brampton, Ont., on Feb. 29.

Abu Baker Luwaga, CEO of Cayman Consults, an immigration company and Pablo Bashir, owner of Africa Training Academy, a truck training school, told attendees they propose training Ugandan drivers to Canadian standards, placing them in local companies to enhance their skills, and sending some to Canada “for further refinement of their skills, thereby enhancing employability internationally.”

Africa Training Academy aims to train 10 drivers a month in Uganda for two years. “Selected truck drivers will be sent to Canada with the assistance of the Cayman Consults under the supervision of TTSAO,” Luwaga said during the presentation.

“TTSAO’s role will not only facilitate retraining the drivers through selected training member schools according to Canadian trucking standards, but also facilitate job placement by collaborating with Canadian trucking companies,” he added.

Fletcher later clarified that the TTSAO does not have expertise or experience in immigration. “We don’t ever participate in that, and we haven’t yet. We are not going to be involved in that. But we do want to be involved in the training aspect,” he said.

Training driver trainers

The TTSAO requires truck driver trainers to have a minimum of five years of verifiable driving experience.

Bashir said his instructors have five years of experience, with some of them driving in European countries. He would like them trained to Canadian standards, either in Canada or in Uganda.

Bashir noted that the trucks in Uganda are different than North American vehicles and hoped a carrier could donate a vehicle to be used for inspection and air brake training. He added a simulator could also help aspiring truckers gain knowledge on Canadian trucks and road conditions.

TTSAO’s Fletcher said he would like to see verifiable experience from the Ugandan trainers but admitted to not knowing what their record keeping system is like compared to Canadian standards.

School not yet open

Bashir said the school has been registered “and we are trying to open it up.”

When TruckNews.com asked how many trucks would be used for instruction, Bashir replied, “Three or four.” Luwaga added, “Three functioning trucks.”

Flether said, “I’ve seen a lot of the planning stage. I’ve even seen the layout for what it was to look like on the ground. I don’t know if there’s been any structure put into place.”

Luwaga later said his focus was on training truckers for jobs in Uganda’s booming oil and gas sector. But if an opportunity presents itself for employment abroad, the training could benefit the candidate, he said.