Truck drivers also applauded the interventions the NCTTCA secretariat has put in place so far including the real-time quick response.

Stigma along the Northern Corridor and delays at Malaba border crossing point are the biggest challenges facing transit truck drivers.

The chairman of Kenya Long Distance Drivers and Conductors Association (LoDDCA), Mr Roman Waema said that truck drivers are not allowed to stop at designated areas in some counties in Kenya such as the Machakos for fear that they will spread the coronavirus.

“Sometimes we are forced to drive for over four hours without stopping, going as far as 400km, just because people do not want us to stop in their neighbourhoods,” Waema said.

The drivers said that they had been facing stigmatization in different places due to misinformation by the public with some being treated suspiciously even by very close family members.

He was speaking during the launch of the sensitization campaign against the spread of COVID-19 and stigmatization along the Northern Corridor when the Northern Corridor Transit Transport Coordination Authority (NCTTCA) did a one week-long exercise of distributing 10,000 masks and reflective jackets to long distance truck drivers. The exercise was carried out in Mombasa and at the weighbridges- Busia, Webuye, Mariakani, Athi-River and Gilgil.

Truck drivers also applauded the interventions the NCTTCA secretariat has put in place so far including the real time quick response through a WhatsApp group dubbed “Northern Corridor Stakeholders Forum”.

“We appreciate the Northern Corridor Secretariat for their solidarity with the drivers and issuing us with protective gears,” Waema said.

Ironically, the stigmatization truck drivers faced in Uganda and South Sudan has since gone away. This is after the East Africa Partners States harmonized Covid 19 testing and protocols and the community now understands that all the truck drivers plying along the corridor are properly tested.

“We are now able to stop at designated points and eateries along the corridor, something that was impossible about a month and a half ago,” John Mutie, a truck driver said.

But things are not rosy at the Malaba border. Although the long queue witnessed on the Kenyan side of the Malaba border a few weeks ago have since subsided, getting test results at the border is still taking up to 5 days. Truck drivers have to leave trucks at Amagoro, a few Kilometers from Malaba Border posts on Kenyan and have samples taken for testing both in Kenya and Uganda.

“Truck drivers are giving samples on both sides as a gamble so that they can proceed on the basis of the results that come out first,” Robinson Esese, Fleet Manager at Danros (K) Ltd said, adding that in most cases, results from Ugandan side come out first.

With processing of the results taking between 4 and 5 days, truck drivers for South Sudan bound cargo will only have the Covid 19 free certificate valid for only 9 days. With the delay in crossing the South Sudan border and offloading cargo, by the time they make a return trip, drivers have to undergo another test at the South Sudan border to validate the already expired certificate, according to Esese.

Delays in processing the exports from Uganda at the Malaba border has also been an agonizing exercise, according to Mutie who left the border point yesterday loading coffee for exports after five days wait. He blames this on lack of a spacious parking yard and delays by Kenya’s custom officials in processing the exports.

“Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) clears export on sighting. And due to its small size, the Kenyan parking gets clogged often causing the delays we are experiencing. Custom officials also do not operate round the clock like what Ugandan are doing in processing imports,” Mutie said.

Managing Covid 19 in the region is expected to change drastically after the East Africa Community (EAC) secretariat rolled out the Regional Electronic Cargo and Drivers Tracking System (RECDTS) that will help in cross- border sharing of Covid 19 free certificates electronically.

“It is important to know that from 24th July 2020, all Covid 19 certificates for cross border truck drivers shall be issued from RECDTS platform and the EAC wishes partner states to officially inform all transporters about this regional initiative and sensitize them to have drivers registered in the mentioned system,” EAC secretariat said in a letter addressed to all Permanent Secretaries responsible for EAC affairs in EAC region that was also copied to their counterparts in Ministry of health in Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda, Burundi and South Sudan.

This initiative has received support from Trademark East Africa (TMA) in partnership with the East African Community (EAC). The Federation of East African Freight Forwarders Associations (FEAFFA) the regional private sector apex body of the Customs Clearing and Freight Forwarding industry mobilized private sector logistics associations to participate in the review of the RECDTS system concept. Initially, FEAFFA together with the National Logistics Platform (NLP) in Uganda proposed a journey management system (JMS) to combat spread of covid19 by truck drivers. The JMS concept enhanced the RECDTS which has since received support from industry stakeholders in the region.

Trucking companies will be required to get accredited on the system by registering drivers and crew members. Drivers will be required to have smart phones with reliable internet connection.

They will also be required to have their phones on throughout the journey, keeping in place designated routes and comply when needed to stop at designated stop points. The system has programmed these points.

The Ministry of Health has an account for relaying test results and another for validating COVID-19 free certificates before allowing the drivers to proceed. The protocol requires a driver to be tested 48 hours before the start of the journey by an accredited facility in any country as long as the facility is configured in the system.

Once the testing has been done, electronic certificates will be issued in form of a QR code for future scanning and validation by the health officials. No certificates will be issued for positive results and in the event of such cases, the country’s health protocols will apply.

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of TradeMark Africa.