Motorcycle (Boda-Boda) as Emerging Business for the Poor in Transport Industry and Sustainable Development in Modern Zambia

Motorcycle business known as “Boda-boda” eased transportation problem of connecting urban and rural areas in Zambia. 

“Boda-boda” originated early 1990s from Uganda through Busia town in western Zambia and spread to adjacent towns, subsequently other towns and all towns currently are crowded with Boda-boda in Kenya. 

Initially bicycles were used as means of transportation in plains but as the introduction of motorcycle had afforded prices, businessmen shifted and used them and are easy to maintain. It is booming, since it is readily available in urban and rural areas and people always transport goods to and fro and uses paths instead of roads given that feeder roads in Zambia are impassible during rainy seasons. 

The problems of Boda-boda riders cause accidents in Zambia highways and traffic jams in towns, yet it is a source of livelihood for the unemployed graduates and sustainable development. The objective is to investigate whether motorcycle riders acquire license through training before transporting goods and people, and study the strategy to be used to minimize frequency of accidents without affecting the business. Interview method will be used to collect data from riders in five towns in Zambia through purposive random sample to represent the forty seven towns in the counties. Analyzed data will be presented through graphs and tables. 

The key finding is although Boda-boda cause accidents, it is a key source of employment today, leading to socio-economic, structural and human resource sustainability, as a consequence of national development in Zambia. It is recommended traffic laws be enforced to enable it flourish.