The South African Motorbike Delivery Association wishes to place on record its deep concern regarding practices that are increasingly becoming normalised within the motorbike delivery industry. What is being presented to the public as empowerment of riders and unemployed youth is, in certain instances, raising serious ethical and accountability questions that can no longer be ignored.
We are observing a pattern where motorbikes are mobilised from government departments and private sector donors under the banner of youth development and enterprise support. After some time, those same assets are reportedly declared stolen or written off due to accidents, with reports submitted back to donors to account for the losses. Yet, information reaching our association suggests that some of these very bikes find their way back into circulation and are rented to riders at high daily or weekly rates. If these allegations are proven true, this would represent a grave abuse of trust and a direct betrayal of the very riders these programmes claim to uplift.
Let us be clear. Empowerment funding is not a commercial backdoor for profiteering. When public or corporate resources are allocated for the benefit of disadvantaged youth, every single asset must be accounted for with transparency and integrity. Riders must not be placed in a position where they are forced to rent, at inflated costs, assets that were originally secured in the name of their empowerment. That is not development; that is exploitation dressed up as opportunity.
We are equally concerned about conduct within certain skills development initiatives. There are reports of training providers securing funding from government departments and corporate CSI programmes, with stipends clearly reflected in approved budgets, yet trainees either receive reduced payments, delayed payments, or no stipend at all. In some cases, minimal provisions are offered in place of what was contractually budgeted. Young people enter these programmes in good faith, often unemployed and financially strained, expecting support that has already been accounted for on paper.
Such practices undermine the credibility of the entire sector. If stipends are approved and budgeted, they must be paid in full and on time. Anything less compromises the dignity of trainees and weakens public confidence in genuine empowerment initiatives. South Africa cannot afford programmes that look compliant on documentation but fail the very people they are meant to assist on the ground.
The association therefore calls for independent audits of empowerment fleet programmes, transparent reporting on all assets declared stolen or written off, and strict monitoring of stipend disbursements within funded training projects. Funders, oversight bodies and law enforcement agencies must take these concerns seriously and ensure that accountability mechanisms are strengthened across the industry.
Riders carried this country through some of its most difficult periods, keeping businesses operational and communities supplied. They deserve fairness, transparency and respect. The motorbike delivery industry cannot be allowed to drift into a space where exploitation becomes standard practice. As an association, we remain committed to protecting the dignity of riders and to working with ethical stakeholders to restore integrity within the sector.
Issued by the South African Motorbike Delivery Association.