Acting assistant commisioner for traffic Kevin Scott, with African Driver Education Program project officer Yien Thiang Luong, and Dandenong Superintendant Chris Ferguson at the launch of the Migrant Resource Centre’s new program aimed at educating African migrants on Australian road rules.
By Shaun Inguanzo
GREATER Dandenong’s African community is the target of a driver education program launched last week by the Migrant Resource Centre (MRC).
MRC, in conjunction with local police and VicRoads, has launched the African Driver Education Program in a bid to stop road collisions caused by a lack of understanding of basic road rules.
MRC director Jenny Semple said the organisation had been working on the project since September last year when Victoria Police approached MRC expressing concerns over African drivers’ knowledge of road rules following a spate of serious, but potentially avoidable road collisions.
“It basically provides education and information to all African communities on the rules and laws of the road in Australia,” she said.
“We are targeting people who already have a licence, telling them what you can do and can not do on P-Plates, the information they have to give when pulled over, and also what their rights are.
“It will also help those who don’t have a licence to understand the road rules.”
Ms Semple said the program would also help African migrants understand the penalties and implications of breaking the road rules.
The project will be funded by the Department of Immigration and Multicultural Affairs, and is set to benefit police, who will learn more about the many African cultures in Greater Dandenong.
The first course is set to take place in several weeks once the finer details are sorted out, Ms Semple said.
