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Transcript/Script SOMALIA RICKSHAW REGULATION - Barrow
HEADLINE: Mogadishu Authorities Regulate Rickshaws to Ease Traffic Congestion
TEASER: The vehicles are a lifeline for thousands in Somalia’s capital city and although some drivers welcome the plan, they call for reduced taxes
PUBLISHED AT: 5/24/23, 12:57p
BYLINE: Abdiaziz Barrow
WRITER: Abdulaziz Osman
DATELINE: MOGADISHU, SOMALIA
VIDEOGRAPHER: Abdulkadir Zubeir
VIDEO EDITOR: Abdulaziz Osman, Salem Solomon
SCRIPT EDITORS: Salem Solomon, Page
VIDEO SOURCE (S): VOA Original
PLATFORMS (mark with X): WEB __ TV X RADIO __
TRT: 2:36
VID APPROVED BY: KE
TYPE: TVPKG
EDITOR NOTES:))
((INTRO))
[[Authorities in Somalia’s capital Mogadishu are implementing a plan to regulate the city’s autorickshaw taxis to ease traffic congestion, while drivers call for reduced taxes. Abdiaziz Barrow spoke to people impacted by the regulation in Mogadishu and Abdulaziz Osman in Washington wrote this story, that is narrated by Salem Solomon.]]
((NARRATION))
These autorickshaws, or Bajajs as locals call them, are part of the daily transportation routine for thousands in Somalia’s capital city Mogadishu.
But a new law designed to cut down on traffic will regulate what days the city’s 50-thousand rickshaw taxis can operate on the roads and limit them to a maximum of 15 days of driving per month. The idea is to separate the taxis into two groups.
((Salah Dheere, Banadir Regional Administration)) (Male in Somali))
“It is a system to register more than 50,000 rickshaw taxis in Mogadishu in order to separate them and mark them into A and B [categories] to reduce traffic congestion, to manage, and to reduce the burden or strain they put on the city.”
((NARRATION))
Abdullahi Bashir Adan is an auto-rickshaw operator and supports the new plan. He has been in this business for five years, supporting his family of 10.
((Abdullahi Bashir Adan, Autorickshaw Taxi Driver)) (Male, in Somali))
“If we are divided into A and B, we will receive more income than we used to. So, I welcome the move and I would like the government to divide us. It is a good thing.”
((NARRATION))
But Adan also says that if he can only operate his rickshaw half of the days in a month, the government should cut the high monthly tax he pays in half as well.
((Abdullahi Bashir Adan, Autorickshaw Taxi Driver)) (Male, in Somali))
“We pay $15 in taxes, and we work for 15 days. That doesn’t work for us. We complied with government’s law, so we are requesting a reduction in taxes, possibly by half.”
((NARRATION))
Authorities have not yet signaled whether they will honor some drivers’ demand to cut taxes, but they say that taxes collected under the new plan are less than what was collected before.
((Salah Dheere, Banadir Regional Administration)) (Male, in Somali))
“The tax they used to pay was $30, but it was reduced to $15 in the last two to three years, so there is a big difference between what it was and what is now. The drivers also make a lot more money now than before, their income has also increased.”
((NARRATION))
In Mogadishu, and the other cities across Somalia, autorickshaw taxis are a significant source of employment for thousands of young people.
While the new plan may reduce traffic congestion and security concerns, some say it could also lead to job losses.
((For Abdiaziz Barrow and Abdulaziz Osman, Salem Solomon, VOA News
NewsML Media TopicsArts, Culture, Entertainment and Media
NetworkVOA
Location (dateline)
Salem Solomon
Embargo DateMay 24, 2023 16:01 EDT
Byline
Abdiaziz Barrow and Abdulaziz Osman, VOA News.
Brand / Language ServiceVoice of America - English
