Renault volunteers to train United Nations Africa staff

Volunteers from Renault Trucks are set to train World Food Programme (WFP) mechanics, workshop managers, fleet managers and trainers in central and western Africa.

As part of a three-year extension of a partnership with the WFP they will visit sites in the Democratic Republic of Congo, the Central African Republic, Ghana, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Chad and Uganda and lead training sessions in workshop and fleet management using a Renault Kerax 6x6, configured as a mobile training unit.

Renault Trucks first deployed a mobile training unit in eastern Africa in 2012.

The unit in central and western Africa will instruct WFP mechanics in the maintenance and repair of the vehicles they use.

A total of 150 WFP workers will benefit from this instruction between now and 2017.

WFP trucks take food supplies as close as possible to those in need, often in difficult conditions and over rough terrain.

In 2014 the WFP supplied 80 million people in 82 countries with 3.2m tonnes of food using 5,000 trucks, 70 aircraft and 20 ships.

Julie Marconnet, head of sponsoring and patronage at Renault Trucks, said the purpose of the exercise is to help the United Nations WFP carry out its mission of delivering food assistance and working with communities to become more self-reliant.

She added: “In many of the world’s most impoverished regions, trucks provide a key link in carrying food to those who need it most, often in cases where lives are at risk.

“By providing its technical expertise in Africa, Renault Trucks ensures the WFP vehicles’ maximum operational availability and helps the operations run more smoothly.”