As a continuation of the programme of technical days dedicated to urban guided transport, IFF organised on Thursday 25 November a webinar on the theme of “Challenges and opportunities of urban guided transport in Africa”.

Moderated by Hassan CHARRAF, expert coach in human and economic development, this event brought together more than forty participants, including officials from urban transport management and regulation authorities and operating companies.

Organised in the form of 3 panels, the webinar was opened and closed by Mohammed SMOUNI, Deputy Director General for Coordination and Development at ONCF, who underlined the interest of the theme among the different actors of urban guided transport.

Lise BREUIL, Head of the Transport and Mobility Division at the French Development Agency (AFD), set the scene for the global vision of urbanisation in Africa and highlighted the challenges of public transport and the corresponding training needs.

Nabil BELABED, General Manager of Casa Transports then presented the company as a major player in mobility in the city of Casablanca before handing over to Nadir YACOUBI, Director of Strategy and Development of Mobility at the Rabat-Salé Tramway Company to talk about the overall programme for the deployment of the tramway in the city of Rabat and its effects on urban mobility.

In another register, Mamadou DIALLO, HRD and Adji Mah MBOUP, Head of Communication of SETER (Senegal) explained the TER of Dakar and its role in the Senegalese railway system.

The second panel dealt with the opportunities presented by stations as exchange hubs, with testimonies from Fabrice Morenon, Managing Director of SNCF Hubs et Connexions and Tewfik Bouarif, Passenger Sales Director at ONCF.

The last panel on the transfer of know-how was led by Gauthier VAN DAMME, General Manager of Transurb simulation, who presented the various digital training solutions offered by the Belgian company.

On the IFF side, Karim Eddine CHENNOUF and Christophe MARTIN, Director of the Institute, presented IFF as a training platform for the rail industry and shared the initial feedback from the 22 and 23 November.

Finally, Karima SAYEH, Director of Human Capital at Ratpdev Casablanca and Laurent GELHAYE, Managing Director of Transdev Rabat, each presented the jobs and skills required for the operation of the tramway.

The meeting ended with a question and answer session with the participants.