PROJECTS: CYCLING INFRASTRUCTURE ADVOCACY

Objective of BEN Namibia's Cycling Infrastructure Advocacy Project
To advocate for improved conditions for cyclists in Namibia, with an initial focus on Windhoek

Strategy

• Advocate for improved conditions for cyclists in Namibian media, and directly with the city of Windhoek.
• Liaise with Government, development agencies, corporate partners, cyclists/potential cyclists and other stakeholders to bring about improvements to Windhoek's cycling infrastructure.

Status
BEN Namibia coordinated the delivery of a petition to the Mayor of the City of Windhoek in 2007. Thousands of Namibians, including government ministers, signed the petition calling on the City to improve conditions for cyclists. In response, the City Council allocated N$400,000 to begin the plannning process in the 2007/08 budget.

At the same time, BEN Namibia leveraged support for the process from the Interface for Cycling Expertise (ICE), a specialist organisation that provides technical expertise to cycle network planning. ICE pledged EURO 40,000 in technical support to assist the City's planning process. BEN Namibia also had support from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), who expressed interest in funding a cycle infrastructure project through the Global Environment Fund.

Sadly, nothing happened. The City of Windhoek Transportation Department did nothing to begin the process, so none of the matching support could be leveraged. BEN Namibia is extremely disappointed with the City's inaction, but continues to advocate for action and remains hopeful that the process will begin in the future.

Media coverge
The following articles, written by BEN Namibia's Managing Director Michael Linke, appeared in the Namibian Newspaper:
Namibia's Transport Challenge
Windhoek's Forgotten Commuters