An international ride-hailing service, Yango, a part of the global tech company Yango Group, has partnered with Guinness Ghana PLC to launch a new safety initiative aimed at preventing drunk driving accidents, promoting safe mobility, and ensuring both drivers and passengers are safe at all times.

A continuous "Don’t Drink and Drive Campaign" will include promotional events and activities to encourage responsible drinking habits by passengers and discourage drunk driving by partner drivers. This includes in-app notifications, regular training, out-of-home marketing campaigns, and numerous advertisements.

The safety forum, which is the first step in the campaign, took place on Wednesday, June 26, 2024, at the Alisa Hotel in Accra and covered topics such as recognizing signs of impairment, strategies for preventing drunk driving, and how to use alternative transportation options like ride-hailing services such as Yango.

The training, provided by certified instructors, was available to all Yango partner drivers and passengers free of charge. It was attended by over 150 participants, including Yango’s partners, partner drivers, passengers, and authorities from various safety organizations across the country.

As part of the "Don’t Drink and Drive Campaign," Yango and Guinness organized a safety training session to raise awareness about the dangers of driving under the influence and to highlight the many safety features Yango has provided for both partner drivers and passengers.

The campaign will also include promotional events and activities to encourage responsible drinking habits by passengers and discourage drunk driving by partner drivers. This includes in-app notifications, regular training, out-of-home marketing campaigns, and numerous advertisements. Yango and Guinness are working together to create a safe and welcoming environment for all members of the community.

“We are committed to promoting responsible road practices and ensuring the safety of passengers and partner drivers. By partnering with Guinness Ghana PLC, we hope to raise awareness about the dangers of drunk driving and provide the community with the knowledge and tools they need to make safe and responsible choices. We are excited to contribute our quota in ensuring the safety and well-being of everyone in the country. Safety is a fundamental need and plays a key role in our vision to create income-generating opportunities for partner drivers while providing affordable and convenient transportation for passengers,” said Mr. Ofonime Tom, Country Manager of Yango Ghana.

The Safety Forum also featured a panel discussion with experts from the health and safety industry speaking on road ethics, crime, safety techniques, and measures to ensure the safety and security of both partner drivers and passengers. The panel consisted of Mr. Eric Komla Kwakuyi, Regional Safety & Security Officer at Yango; Lynessa Darko, Sustainability and Responsibility Manager at Guinness Ghana PLC; and Mr. Damoah Emmanuel Nyarkoh, Director of Safety Campaign Ghana.

Lynessa Darko, Sustainability and Responsibility Manager at Guinness Ghana PLC, expressed optimism about the campaign and safety training while encouraging more ride-hailing companies to follow Yango's footsteps in ensuring the safety and well-being of their key stakeholders.

She said, “Safeguarding our community is very important in national development. Ensuring that, as brands and companies, we play our roles in providing adequate safety education and awareness to help drivers and passengers stay alert on the roads while knowing the dangers of drunk driving is the first step to achieving a safe and sound environment viable for economic growth.”

The beneficiary partner drivers received certificates of participation to confirm that they have successfully completed the safety training and are fully aware of the many safety features provided by Yango for partner drivers, such as the display of passenger ratings, identity photo checks in special cases, display of alert zones and non-penalty configuration for drivers to skip orders to alert zones, display of passenger profile pictures, rating forms to evaluate riders, and in-app calls to support.

The passengers who attended the training also expressed their gratitude to Yango and Guinness for organizing this initiative and pledged to use the knowledge acquired to ensure their safety and the safety of other road users.

Some of the safety features available to passengers include rating forms to evaluate trips, display of driver ratings, safety center (which houses the share route, ambulance and police, trusted contacts, and emergency situation buttons), SOS button, prompt support team, and drivers' document checks, among others.

This move aligns with Yango’s launch of the "Safety Talk Series" last month, during which the company visited and educated students, faculty members, and the general public at the University of Ghana during their SRC week celebrations. Yango and Guinness are working together to create a safe and welcoming environment for all community members.