Despite efforts made by the Ministry of Transport to restore order in the sector, most of the driving schools in big towns and cities are operating illegally.

Driving is a profession that attracts many especially those living in the urban areas. For some it is a hobby. The influx of cars and vehicles from abroad has caused many people to open driving schools in order to train drivers. In Yaounde, driving schools are found in almost every street. Peter K. a driver who lives in the Biyem-Assi neighbourhood is confused. He said he said he learnt how to drive in a driving school but he has not been able to obtain an authentic driving license. Martin N. for his part said he attended a driving school but did not receive adequate training.

Owning a driving school is one of the easiest businesses to open following the increasing number of cars. Most of the driving schools have only an office and a placard to show that it is a driving school but do not have a classroom for lessons or vehicles for the practical. In some cases, the owner of the driving school has only one vehicle and he alone does the teaching and the practical part while others have their relatives as teachers and instructors in their driving schools. Some driving school owners do not even have offices but people go to them for training believing they are experienced drivers. Some learn how to drive in car washes. During the process of washing cars they learn how to drive as well.

Generally the drivers know how to drive but they don't have driving licenses and they have no idea of the Highway Code. However, there are some driving schools which are authentic. Such driving schools have authorisation from the Ministry of Transport before operating. Beatrice Mballa Manga, who works with Auto Ecole Française Mvog_Mbi, said the school is trains drivers for maximum two months for normal training and accelerated training for 20 days. The training, according to her, consists of a mastery of the Highway Code. She said drivers who do not have driving licenses undergo a refresher course for 20 10 days before allowing them to apply for driving license. After training the candidates go for mock theory and practical examinations before going for the official driving tests organised by the Ministry of Transport. The Ministry then sends the results of successful candidates to the different driving schools for them to compile their documents for the driving license.

Table 'sopecam.reaction' doesn't exist - () Commentaire -