All World Bank-financed projects in Tanzania are required to achieve a minimum 3-star iRAP safety rating, announced by TANROADS yesterday at the African Regional Seminar on Road Safety in Mwanza.

Eng. George Daffa from the Tanzania Roads Agency (TANROADS) presented on the TanRAP experience implementing the iRAP Methodology to eliminate high-risk roads.

His presentation confirmed the legal requirement of road safety audits including World Bank’s minimum condition that road designs and upgrades achieve a minimum 3-star safety standard to be eligible for bank financing.

Tanzania’s Road Safety Policy requires road authorities to monitor the safety of their roads, identify locations with high crash rates and implement safety improvements.

Eng. Daffa said, “It is good to have these targets so that we can know where to aim as a starting point. All that is lacking is the adequate budget to help us realise this.”

The results of world-first Ten Step Project in Tanzania were shared at the event, along with training in the iRAP Methodology by AfricaRAP Lead Racheal Nganwa.

Racheal Nganwa said, “The World Bank 3-star or better policy is just one example of the far-reaching and lifesaving impacts of the Ten Step Tanzania Project. The Bank is now implementing the policy on all their projects and building internal capacity to be able to assess the safety of road designs. We applaud World Bank for its leadership in prioritising safety in its projects, ensuring safe journeys for road users across the country.

The African Regional Seminar on Road Safety runs from Monday 27 November to Friday 1 December, hosted by the Tanzania Road Safety Initiative (TARSI) in collaboration with government institutions and supported by the Ministry of Works and Transport, Tanzania .

The Seminar includes a comprehensive programme of presentations on Africa’s road safety challenge and latest research and initiatives for safe roads and roadsides, safe speeds, safe road use, safe vehicles and post crash response.

For more information:

• Download the Seminar agenda here
• Read more on the Ten Step Tanzania Project and outcomes here