Transport and Communication
Primary 6 · Social and Religious Studies
Transport and Communication
Lesson 1 of 4
25 min
Let's begin
Mugisha's aunt sells avocados at a market in Kigali. Her avocados grow on a farm near Lake Kivu.
Before they reach her stall, they ride in a basket on a farmer's head, then on a bicycle, then in a lorry. That is three kinds of transport before the market even opens!
Today you will name the forms of transport used in East Africa and weigh up the good and bad sides of each one.
Transport is moving people or goods from one place to another.
Every kind of transport needs two things: a way to travel on (a road, a railway, a lake, the sky or a pipe) and something that moves on it (a vehicle, a boat, a plane, or your own feet).
| Form | What moves | Examples in East Africa |
|---|---|---|
| Road | People on foot, bicycles, motos, buses, lorries | The most used form in Rwanda. Roads link Kigali to most towns and to Uganda, Tanzania and Burundi. |
| Railway | Trains | Kenya and Tanzania have railways that carry goods inland from their sea ports. Rwanda has no railway yet. |
| Water | Canoes, boats, ferries, ships | Boats on Lake Kivu and Lake Victoria; big ships at the ports of Mombasa and Dar es Salaam. |
| Air | Planes, helicopters | Kigali International Airport at Kanombe, home of the national airline RwandAir. |
| Pipeline | Liquids and gas, pushed through pipes | A pipeline carries fuel from the port of Mombasa to towns deep inside Kenya. |
Traditional transport is the kind people used long ago, and many still use it today: walking, carrying loads on the head or back, using animals such as donkeys, and paddling dug-out canoes. In old Rwanda, sick people were carried on a stretcher called ingobyi.
Modern transport uses engines or machines: bicycles, motos, cars, minibuses, lorries, trains, motor boats and planes. In Rwanda a shared minibus taxi is often called twegerane, which means "let's sit together".
| Form | Advantages | Disadvantages |
|---|---|---|
| Road | Reaches almost every village; goes door to door; cheap for short trips | Accidents; traffic jams; dirt roads turn to mud in the rainy season |
| Railway | Carries very heavy goods cheaply over long distances | Costly to build; goes only where the tracks go |
| Water | Carries heavy loads cheaply | Slow; only where there is water; storms can be dangerous |
| Air | The fastest; good for long trips and for goods that go bad quickly | The most expensive; carries smaller loads; needs an airport |
| Pipeline | Moves liquids day and night with few accidents | Carries only liquids and gas; costly to build |
Worked example
A farmer in Musanze must send fresh French beans to a shop in Europe. The beans go bad in a few days.
Step 1 How far? Very far, across the sea.
Step 2 How fast? Very fast, before the beans spoil.
Step 3 Only one form is fast enough over that distance: air transport.
Careful! The cheapest form is not always the best. The right choice depends on the load, the distance and the time you have.
Tip
How heavy? How far? How fast?
Ask these three questions before you choose a form of transport.
Heavy and far but not urgent: think railway or water. Light, far and urgent: think air. Short trip to the market: think road.
Answer each one, then tap Show answer to check.
Name the five main forms of transport.
Answer: road, railway, water, air and pipeline.
Is carrying a basket of beans on your head traditional or modern transport?
Answer: traditional. People have carried loads this way for a very long time.
Give one advantage and one disadvantage of road transport.
Answer: advantage: it reaches almost every village. Disadvantage: accidents, jams, or muddy roads in the rainy season.
A company must move 500 tonnes of cement from Dar es Salaam to a town far inland. Speed does not matter. Which is better: air or railway? Why?
Answer: railway. It carries very heavy loads cheaply. Air would cost far too much.
What you learned today
Sources and credits
This lesson adapts CC BY-SA material and is shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Quick check
Match each form of transport to an example from East Africa.
Tap one on the left, then its partner on the right.
