Kenya dominates the 2025 African Best Young Driver finals in Naivasha

The event brought together top young drivers from Kenya, South Africa, and Botswana for an intense day of competition, learning, and road safety advocacy, with Kenya emerging as the overall continental champion.

Representing the host nation, Victor Maina Kabura claimed first place after a stellar display of skill, control, and composure across six performance-based challenges. He was closely followed by Wany Tebogo Wani from Botswana in second place and Chris Waweru Kungu, also from Kenya, in third.

The competition tested participants on a series of technical and safety focused driving challenges, including emergency tire change, braking avoidance, bowl slalom, damage reduction parcours, off-road terrain navigation, and roll car stability.

“These tasks are not about speed they’re about developing the next generation of safety conscious drivers who can transform Africa’s roads,” said Daniel Kiprono, Head of AA Kenya Driving School.

AA Kenya CEO Francis Theuri lauded the participants for their passion and discipline, emphasizing the broader mission of empowering youth through responsible mobility.

“Through this initiative, we are empowering young people to become ambassadors of safe mobility. Hosting the finals here in Naivasha reinforces Kenya’s commitment to road safety leadership in Africa,” said Mr. Theuri.

The African Best Young Driver Challenge is an initiative of the Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA), implemented locally by AA Kenya. This year’s continental finals followed an extensive national selection process held across Eldoret, Mombasa, Nakuru, and Nairobi, where over 2,380 participants competed for the chance to represent Kenya.

The Naivasha event was organized in partnership with WRC Kenya and the Kenya Police, who also reinforced crucial safety messages to spectators and motorists traveling to Naivasha.