Charles Bonou (right) pictured with Boubacar Sylla (President of CAM)  in Guinea 

Since completing iRAP training and accreditation, civil engineer Charles Lowan Bonou has travelled from his home country of Burkina Faso to undertake projects in Benin and Guinea, opening exciting new doors for professional experience and growth.  

Mr Bonou completed Bachelor and Masters Degrees in Civil Engineering at the Higher School of Public Works in Ouagadougou.  

He first became interested in learning about the iRAP Methodology in 2023 because of his engagement for road safety and new technologies. He completed nine online iRAP training courses to build his knowledge and achieved iRAP Accreditation in Coding, Surveying, and Analysis and Reporting last year. 

Mr Bonou travelled to Cotonou in Benin in September last year to share his knowledge and support the iRAP team in delivering an iRAP Workshop and in-field iRAP survey of 50km to 21 local road safety stakeholders. Supported by the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC), the workshop aimed to build local capacity within the Beninese government and optimize road safety in the country’s infrastructure investments. 

Just last week, Mr Bonou was on the road again, this time to Conakry. From May 5 to 15, he joined the NGO Club des Amis du Monde (CAM) team to conduct the first ever iRAP assessment in Guinea, supported by Rio Tinto. The project is assessing 250 km of the National Road 1 corridor from Conakry to Mamou, and two schools, with the aim of improving road safety in the West African country.  

One of the other major outcomes of this mission is the training of the CAM Team in using Star Rating For Schools and iRAP Star Ratings so they can continue the assessment of all schools located on this very important road. 

Speaking of his experience Mr Bonou said, “Contributing to the improvement of road safety is for me one of the greatest sources of professional satisfaction. This mission has been an enriching human and professional experience, during which we laid the foundations for safer roads and schools in Guinea. I emerge from it enriched and even more motivated, ready to tackle the challenges of road safety in Africa through strong synergies of action and partnerships like the one that enabled the completion of this project.” 

Natalie Chiavassa, iRAP Safer Journeys Lead for Africa congratulated Mr Bonou for his achievement of iRAP Accreditation and personal drive to apply his skills and knowledge to advance road safety, not just in Burkina Faso, but also in new countries. 

“The iRAP team is very enthusiastic and proud of our strong partnership with local actors like Charles. He is great example of the opportunities that Accreditation can bring and iRAP partnerships transforming road safety across Africa and the world.”  

Charles (centre) with the CAM and Rio Tinto team in Guinea 

For more information:

• On iRAP Training, click here.
• On iRAP Accreditation and practitioners accredited globally to undertake iRAP projects, click here. 
• On the Benin Workshop, click here.
• On the Guinea project, click here.