THE Second Republic has unveiled a dynamic range of traffic and safety initiatives centred on an innovative National Driving Licence System.
In a concerted effort to augment the country’s Road Safety Performance, the Government is employing legal, policy, and administrative mechanisms that align with the National Development Strategy 1 (NDS 1).
Earlier this year, the National Road Safety Indaba committed to introducing speed-limiting devices, vehicle tracking devices, and a Government-monitored Vehicle Tracking System for all public service buses.
“The Vehicle Tracking System will ensure compliance with prescribed speed limits and enable real-time identification of the driver of a specific bus,” the authorities said.
Legal frameworks to incorporate these limiting and monitoring devices are forthcoming.
The new strategy will significantly enhance the enforcement capabilities of traffic law enforcement agencies through the integration of Information Communication Technology (ICT) and digital technologies. These measures aim to streamline the recording of violations and enforcement of traffic regulations. A new National Call Centre will also be established, enabling the public to report unsafe vehicles and negligent or reckless driving.
The soon-to-launch National Driving Licence System will further support these efforts by creating an electronic database of all licenced drivers directly linked to relevant stakeholders and enforcement agencies.
The newly introduced Driving Licence will include 13 categories
fulfilling the standards set by the United Nations Convention on Road Traffic
International Organisation for Standardisation and International Electrotechnical Commission.
The revised system will accommodate various vehicle sizes and introduce combination categories, such as a vehicle and trailer, thus aiming to prevent drivers from operating vehicles they may not be capable of controlling safely.
After the transitional phase, the new system will consolidate the Professional Driver’s Permit and Defensive Drivers Certificate onto a single card. The permit categories will now include Code G for Goods vehicles, Code P for Passenger vehicles, and Code D for Dangerous Goods vehicles. All Professional Drivers’ Permits will be renewable every two years, requiring drivers to undergo eye tests and biometric record updates periodically.
The updated Driver’s Licence is fully compliant with the standard specifications of the Southern African Development Community (SADC), Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) and East African Community (EAC). It demonstrates the Second Republic’s commitment to harmonising and standardising driver training, testing, and certification across all 25 Tripartite Regional Countries.
Additionally, to address the backlog of 600,000 applicants awaiting Driver’s Licenses, the Ministry has established a strategic, operational plan involving phased approaches to mitigate congestion at the Central Vehicle Registry (CVR). “During the first phase, we will prioritise those with manual Certificates of Competency issued between 1 January 2019 and 30 June 2019,” they affirmed.
Upon full operation of the new Driver’s Licence System, those who have passed their Driving Competence Tests can expect to receive their new Licence within seven days, thanks to automated processes and instant printing capability.
In line with the vision of His Excellency, The President of The Republic of Zimbabwe, Emmerson Mnangagwa, these initiatives represent the collective commitment to improving the country’s Road Safety Performance and achieving our targets towards reducing the number of road crashes.
