Personal security and daily travel in sub-Saharan Africa: the case of Dakar

International audienceIn both the cities of the North and the South, personal security is one of the factors that determine the use of transport modes.Personal security relates to a wide range of documented incidents: theft of money or property, with or without violence, physical or verbal assaults, intimidation, sexual harassment, etc. Both with regard to improving knowledge about daily mobility and to developing and evaluating transport policies, it is necessary to understand the prevalence of personal security concerns in transport among urban dwellers and to highlight how individual factors influence perceived insecurity. To answer this question, we have considered the case of Dakar, a metropolis in West Africa, on the basis of data from a household travel survey conducted in 2015. We present the main findings on perceived and experienced insecurity during walking and public transport trips, focusing on individual factors such as gender, physical disability, and household income. In a metropolis that is undergoing rapid spatial development such as Dakar, where most trips are made on foot and by public transport, a high number of people feel at risk, especially among women, and persons with a handicap. Experienced insecurity is far from being a secondary problem in the analysis of the travel difficulties of Dakar's residents. It is greater in vehicles than at public transport stops. These initial findings appear to be consistent with those presented in the literature review. They raise the issue of the poor design and lighting of public spaces and for pedestrian walkways. While improving perceived security, especially for women, requires specific consideration and measures, it also requires a more overarching improvement in public transport provision and measures to create walkingfriendly neighborhoods