Your support will help us to continue our essential work in sub-Saharan Africa, strengthening professional driver training standards, and improving rural access to healthcare.

The Sustainable Development Goals provide a shared blueprint for peace and prosperity for people and the planet, now and into the future. An estimated 1.35 million people die each year as a result of road traffic crashes. As part of the goals, the United Nations has set an ambitious target to halve the number of global deaths and injuries from road crashes by 2030.

Transaid is focused on achieving this target, and improving road safety through our professional driver training programmes across sub-Saharan Africa.

In the last year, we have trained almost 7,000 drivers and 51 trainers at Transaid-assisted training centres in Zambia, Tanzania, Uganda, Ghana, and Mozambique. Our National Helmet Wearing Coalition in Kenya entered into phase two, and continues to promote collective action to improve motorcycle safety. Rachel Lwanga is a professional driver in Uganda, who trained with the Professional Driver Training Uganda project Phase Two (PDTU2).

Data from the World Health Organisation (2023) shows that malaria continues to pose a major threat to rural communities and particularly children under five, with Africa being home to 95% of all malaria cases and 96% of deaths.

75% of maternal deaths could be avoided through timely access to emergency child-birth related care.

As part of the Sustainable Development Goals, the United Nations has set targets to end the epidemic of malaria, and reduce the global maternal mortality ratio by 2030. The MAMaZ Against Malaria (MAM) at scale programme utilises Emergency Transport Schemes (ETS) to provide a vital link between rural communities and health services, and has dramatically reduced malaria mortality in young children by increasing access to health services.

Nana and Mervis both received life-saving assistance through the MAM@Scale programme in Zambia.

Supporting Transaid's Christmas Appeal means helping more women like Rachel to fulfil their ambitions as professional drivers, and helping children like Nana and Mervis to access healthcare when they need it most.

£50 could fund training for a motorcycle rider in Kenya, where Transaid has been working since 2021 to establish a National Helmet Wearing Coalition. This project aims to reduce the severity of motorcycle-related head injuries and fatalities on the country’s roads, and develop the solutions to make Kenyan journeys safer. Now in its second phase, the coalition is working to strengthen the implementation of the existing Kenyan Helmet Standard through improved enforcement capacity, as well as training for riders, whilst also securing the long-term future of the coalition and cementing Kenyan ownership of the initiative.

£125 could fund a bicycle for a Community Health Volunteer (CHV). CHVs are the backbone of the health system in rural Zambia, where they provide invaluable health advice to their communities, which are located far from health facilities. CHVs are working to combat severe malaria by educating families on the danger signs, administering RAS (rectal artesunate), a pre-treatment for children with suspected severe malaria, and referring patients to health facilities for further treatment.

£300 could fund training for a female driver in Ghana or Uganda. Several of our programmes are focused around championing female inclusion in the transport and logistics sector, and the Professional Driver Training Uganda project Phase Two (PDTU2) aims to increase the number of female HGV and PSV drivers on the road. Uganda is experiencing a huge rise in demand for professional drivers which is expected to increase over the coming years, and Transaid believes that encouraging more women into the sector will benefit transport companies, contribute to improved safety and generate new career opportunities for women.

£550 could fund a bicycle ambulance for a rural community. The bicycle ambulance helps women, children and men in rural communities in Africa to reach vital health services when they are most needed, it is a simple but much needed solution that can make a huge difference.

With your help, we can continue to transform lives through safe, available, and sustainable transport. See here for more information on our programmes.