Urban Transport: The Unsung Taxi Loaders of Douala
By Synthia Lateu
A little after 3:30 p.m. on a Thursday in July 2025, Junior Nkuete paces through the taxi lines at Dalip taxi station in Douala on the lookout for passengers.
He repeatedly shouts in French, “Yassa, Yassa, deux places!” to announce that the taxi he is loading has space for two more people heading to Yassa, another neighborhood in Douala.
He has developed a keen eye, able to quickly spot potential passengers from meters away. His workday began just 30 minutes earlier.
He confides that the evening period is the most profitable for him, not only because people are leaving work tired and eager to get home, but also because he can engage in other revenue-generating jobs before then.
“People suffer here later in the afternoon and we need to help them move. Around 5 to 7 p.m., there’s always a crowd. Some are sick, others can’t walk,” he explains.
Once the taxi is fully loaded, the driver hands him 100 francs CFA. It may seem like little, but with that amount paid for every taxi he loads, by the time he wraps up around midnight, it adds up enough to meet his daily needs.
“I can earn like 3 to 5 thousand francs a day. It depends. It’s not the same every day,” Junior confides.
Proud of the services provided by taxi loaders whom she often relies on, a woman in her early 40s, also struggling to board a taxi after work, says she tries to tip them when she can, hoping they will save her a good spot in the car whenever she is around.
Just a few meters away, at another taxi station near the Mairie de Douala 2ème, Sansi Gustave has worked as a taxi loader for 15 years. Having faced disappointment in his initial trade as a car mechanic, he turned to taxi loading. Here, he and his colleagues coordinate their movements more systematically.
“When we arrive in the morning, we’re organized into three groups of two. If one group works today, another takes over tomorrow. There’s a board where we note the number of taxis we load. A full load earns 50 francs. In a day, each person can earn about 2,000 francs. When I’m not here, I work as a mason,” Gustave says.
Across Douala, most taxi stations rely on these loaders, predominantly men who serve as crucial links between taxis and passengers in the city’s daily hustle.
Jeaso Pierre, a former taxi loader, shares his nostalgia every time he finds himself at a taxi station. “I was a taxi loader. I stopped 7 years ago. The job is still valuable today, and I appreciate those who are still doing it.” He says.
To taxi drivers, these loaders ease the burden of finding passengers, helping to fill taxis faster and reducing wait times. Despite occasional tensions, many drivers acknowledge that loaders make their work smoother.
Their presence is especially appreciated by passengers, who often depend on them to navigate the sometimes chaotic taxi system.
Junior Nkuete admits the challenges are many ranging from physical exhaustion, risks involved in navigating through taxis, to occasional misunderstandings with drivers or passengers.
Though not always a career of choice, for some, taxi loading is a temporary fix , a way to bridge financial gaps while seeking other opportunities.
