Rethinking the future of minibus

Papers presented virtually at the 42nd International Southern African Transport Conference on 08 - 11 July 2024The world is currently grappling with congestion problems that have rendered cities unlivable. Improvement in public transport has been one of the most sought-after solutions with implementation of Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) Systems being one of the key strategies. Previous studies have demonstrated that Mini-Bus Taxis (MBTs) could be part of the solution to improved public transport as they won’t be eliminated overnight. Transportation officials and authorities in South Africa have rethought the future of MBTs and come up with initiatives to improve the quality of MBT service. This essay presents the Blue Dot Program in Western Cape; Moja Cruise in eThekwini and the MBT contracting model in Rustenburg Local Municipality as some of the initiatives taken in South Africa. The approaches taken focus on improving safety, security, availability and reliability of MBTs as a mode of transport

Assessment of animal African trypanosomiasis (AAT) vulnerability in cattle-owning communities of sub-Saharan Africa

Background: Animal African trypanosomiasis (AAT) is one of the biggest constraints to livestock production and a threat to food security in sub-Saharan Africa. In order to optimise the allocation of resources for AAT control, decision makers need to target geographic areas where control programmes are most likely to be successful and sustainable and select control methods that will maximise the benefits obtained from resources invested. Methods: The overall approach to classifying cattle-owning communities in terms of AAT vulnerability was based on the selection of key variables collected through field surveys in five sub-Saharan Africa countries followed by a formal Multiple Correspondence Analysis (MCA) to identify factors explaining the variations between areas. To categorise the communities in terms of AAT vulnerability profiles, Hierarchical Cluster Analysis (HCA) was performed. Results: Three clusters of community vulnerability profiles were identified based on farmers’ beliefs with respect to trypanosomiasis control within the five countries studied. Cluster 1 communities, mainly identified in Cameroon, reported constant AAT burden, had large trypanosensitive (average herd size = 57) communal grazing cattle herds. Livestock (cattle and small ruminants) were reportedly the primary source of income in the majority of these cattle-owning households (87.0 %). Cluster 2 communities identified mainly in Burkina Faso and Zambia, with some Ethiopian communities had moderate herd sizes (average = 16) and some trypanotolerant breeds (31.7 %) practicing communal grazing. In these communities there were some concerns regarding the development of trypanocide resistance. Crops were the primary income source while communities in this cluster incurred some financial losses due to diminished draft power. The third cluster contained mainly Ugandan and Ethiopian communities which were mixed farmers with smaller herd sizes (average = 8). The costs spent diagnosing and treating AAT were moderate here. Conclusions: Understanding how cattle-owners are affected by AAT and their efforts to manage the disease is critical to the design of suitable locally-adapted control programmes. It is expected that the results could inform priority setting and the development of tailored recommendations for AAT control strategies

Pyrethroid treatment of cattle for tsetse control: Reducing its impact on dung fauna

Background: African trypansomiases of humans and animals can be controlled by attacking the vectors,various species of tsetse fly. Treatment of cattle with pyrethroids to kill tsetse as they feed is the most cost-effective method. However, such treatments can contaminate cattle dung, thereby killing the fauna which disperse the dung and so play an important role in soil fertility. Hence there is a need to identify cost-effective methods of treating cattle with minimal impact on dung fauna. Methodology/Principal Findings: We used dung beetles to field bioassay the levels of dung contamination following the use of spray and pour-on formulations of deltamethrin, applied to various parts of the body of cattle in Zimbabwe. Results suggested that dung was contaminated by contact with insecticide on the body surface as the cattle defecated, and by ingestion of insecticide as the cattle licked themselves. Death of dung beetles was reduced to negligible levels by using only the spray and applying it to the legs and belly or legs alone, i.e., places where most tsetse feed. Conclusion/Significance: The restricted applications suitable for minimising the impact on dung fauna have the collateral benefits of improving the economy and convenience of cattle treatments for tsetse control. The demonstration of collateral benefits is one of the surest ways of promoting environmentally friendly procedures

A scoping review of foot-and-mouth disease risk, based on spatial and spatio-temporal analysis of outbreaks in endemic settings

International audienc

Incorporating contracted minibus-taxis into transitional integrated public transport networks:the case of Rustenburg

Papers presented virtually at the 42nd International Southern African Transport Conference on 08 - 11 July 2024Paratransit plays a vital role in passenger transport in African cities. Several cities are searching for ways of incorporating minibus-taxis (MBTs) into integrated public transport networks (IPTNs), rather than attempting to replace them through fleet buy-out and formalisation – a process that has frequently led to lengthy periods of negotiations with MBT operators, followed by an impasse or continued on-the-road competition with new IPTNs. Of the many questions that need to be answered, key is whether workable models of hybrid operations (i.e. combining both services with informal characteristics, and formal bus operations) can be found. The Rustenburg Local Municipality (RLM) has recently adopted a flexible IPTN system design approach with reduced PT infrastructure, that incorporates existing MBTs as a part of the transition towards a fully-fledged IPTN, in both formal and informal types of operation. This offers a learning opportunity to help understand the potential benefits and pitfalls of such hybridisation. The paper briefly describes the design approach and MBT contracting model for incorporating existing MBT operators in RLM. It then focuses on the evidence regarding selected key operational measures that affect the quality of the hybrid system: operational schedule reliability, in- service speeds, and route adherence, which could be assessed from GPS tracking of participating MBTs. The paper concludes with some implications for other medium-sized cities transitioning towards upgraded IPTNs

Cost analysis of options for management of African Animal Trypanosomiasis using interventions targeted at cattle in Tororo District; south-eastern Uganda

BACKGROUND: Tsetse-transmitted African trypanosomes cause both nagana (African animal Trypanosomiasis-AAT) and sleeping sickness (human African Trypanosomiasis - HAT) across Sub-Saharan Africa. Vector control and chemotherapy are the contemporary methods of tsetse and trypanosomiasis control in this region. In most African countries, including Uganda, veterinary services have been decentralised and privatised. As a result, livestock keepers meet the costs of most of these services. To be sustainable, AAT control programs need to tailor tsetse control to the inelastic budgets of resource-poor small scale farmers. To guide the process of tsetse and AAT control toolkit selection, that now, more than ever before, needs to optimise resources, the costs of different tsetse and trypanosomiasis control options need to be determined. METHODS: A detailed costing of the restricted application protocol (RAP) for African trypanosomiasis control in Tororo District was undertaken between June 2012 and December 2013. A full cost calculation approach was used; including all overheads, delivery costs, depreciation and netting out transfer payments to calculate the economic (societal) cost of the intervention. Calculations were undertaken in Microsoft Excel™ without incorporating probabilistic elements. RESULTS: The cost of delivering RAP to the project was US$6.89 per animal per year while that of 4 doses of a curative trypanocide per animal per year was US$ 5.69. However, effective tsetse control does not require the application of RAP to all animals. Protecting cattle from trypanosome infections by spraying 25 %, 50 % or 75 % of all cattle in a village costs US$1.72, 3.45 and 5.17 per animal per year respectively. Alternatively, a year of a single dose of curative or prophylactic trypanocide treatment plus 50$ 4.87 and US$ 5.23 per animal per year. Pyrethroid insecticides and trypanocides cost 22.4 and 39.1 % of the cost of RAP and chemotherapy respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Cost analyses of low cost tsetse control options should include full delivery costs since they constitute 77.6 % of all project costs. The relatively low cost of RAP for AAT control and its collateral impact on tick control make it an attractive option for livestock management by smallholder livestock keepers