Category Archives: bicycles

bicycles, Ghana

A Cycle-Wheelchair in Ada, Ghana

Spring 2002 InGear

I had come searching for Akrofi Augustine while visiting the Volta River Estuary community of Ada, home to the Nene Ocansey I Technical Center (NEKOTECH), one of two Pedals for Progress partners in Ghana. Pedals for Progress has shipped four containers of bicycles and parts to NEKOTECH beginning in late 2000, and already there are more than 1,000 PfP-provided bicycles circulating in Ada district.

spring2002cycleWheelchairAkrofi (“first-born”) lives in Amlakpo, a small village of the Ada district. Amlakpo is four kilometers out of Kasseh, the commercially-active crossroads where traffic parts, continuing eastward across the Volta River towards neighboring Togo, or turning south a few miles down river to Ada proper. Akrofi’s family owned their modest home, and rented the other half of the simple concrete-block duplex to a Peace Corps volunteer. Through this contact we had heard of this energetic young man, who had established a reputation locally for exceptional initiative.

Akrofi, now 29, told me his story. He had suffered polio at age 2, crippling his legs and leaving them emaciated and useless. Through first grade, he lived with his grandmother, attending school nearby. Crawling to school and elsewhere, Akrofi developed exceptionally strong arm and chest muscles. However, after returning to live with his father, the one-mile distance to the new school eventually compelled him to drop out.

For many years, he stayed close to home, for a while feeling depressed and useless. On reaching his teens and hoping to make a financial contribution to the family, he began to work as a barber. For a while, he persevered, but waiting for people to come to his home to sit for a haircut was frustrating and didn’t generate much income.

His break came when the clinic in Batton, at the behest of his father who worked there, gave him a bicycle-wheelchair put together by a local workshop. The customized contraption, with the drive chain fixed high in front, permitted Akrofi to efficiently apply his brawny arms to moving around independently.

With the freedom provided, he was able to break out of home-bound isolation. Unable to make a living cutting hair at home, Akrofi set about to realize a long-held dream of learning to repair radios and televisions.

A childhood friend was a store owner and established electronics repairman in Kasseh. Akrofi, when not barbering, hung out there, and soon came to think that electronics repair was far more interesting than barbering. It was a career where his disability was not an impediment. When he barbered, it was difficult to cut people’s hair because he couldn’t readily circle around his customer like standing barbers do. With electronics repair, Akrofi could focus on his work at a table, relying on his hands alone.

In the months preceding our January 2002 visit, Akrofi apprenticed himself to the electronics repair shop. In exchange for the proprietor’s time and knowledge, Akrofi works for nothing, slowly acquiring the varied skills to run such a business. In spite of the five-kilometer distance, the young man is a regular sight on the road, outpacing pedestrians and greeting a growing number of acquaintances. Soon, he will be able to leave and begin his own business.

Akrofi is satisfied; he enjoys the challenges and variety of repair work, knows he will earn more money once he is on his own, and looks forward to becoming independent and his own boss. Once he has mastered the trade, he plans on moving near his father in Batton. And all because of a bicycle wheelchair.

bicycles, Eritrea

Eritrea Again!

Spring 2002 InGear

2008summerEritreaLetterNow that the recent border war between Eritrea and Ethiopia has ended and peace has returned to the Horn of Africa, P4P has resumed donations to the Cultural Assets Rehabilitation Program (CARP), an initiative of the Eritrean Ministry of the Environment.

Two P4P containers holding 834 bicycles, financed by the Department of Defense Humanitarian Shipping Program and originating in New Jersey and northern Virginia in late February, arrived in the Eritrean capital of Asmara in May 2002. These donations build on four shipments provided by P4P during 1995 and 1996, which put postal workers, teachers, students, health workers, and small entrepreneurs on bikes.

CARP’s overall goals are: protecting historical monuments and sites; conserving the environment; and supporting the development of the arts, music, and literature. With P4P assistance, CARP is now seeking to reduce air pollution in Asmara. As well as generating employment, a greater use of bicycles will reduce emissions that are harming the historical monuments.

The program is aided by the existence in Eritrea of a strong cycling culture, as bikes were introduced and widely used during the Italian occupation of the country in the late 1930s and early 1940s. Thus there is a strong demand for bikes in rebuilding the country after the recent border war, and Eritrea’s earlier, long war for independence from Ethiopia. P4P is pleased to provide timely help.

bicycles, Moldova, Peace Corps

Mobility in Moldova

2002 InGear

Following the disintegration of the USSR and the collapse of the Eastern Bloc economy, communities like Stefan Voda, in the former Soviet republic of Moldova, have seen incomes shrink, the cost of imported goods such as petroleum skyrocket, and their modest standards of living plummet. Personal mobility and productivity have suffered. As bus fares rose, the inhabitants of Stefan Voda could not afford to take public transport, the system collapsed, and a town once inter-connected via a bus system was left without transportation. Private cars are few. Moldovans are fond of bicycles, yet quality and price is a challenge for those on limited incomes. Nobody will sell a used bike, and new expensive imported bikes are the only ones available.

Local farmers on average walk 10–12 miles daily, to and from their fields. This takes two or more hours away from work. The average commute to work and school for teachers, students and others living outside the center of town is 30–45 minutes or more, exacerbated by the local tradition of returning home for lunch.

Peace Corps volunteer Marc Skelton, who works in a local non-governmental organization, Rural 21, coordinated with Stefan Voda. Marc teaches health to 6th and 7th graders, and facilitates HIV/AIDS seminars with local doctors and other medical professionals, to address the spread of this affliction resulting from the conversion of Moldova in general into a gateway for trafficking in women and drugs. Marc immediately saw that bicycles could contribute to better public health and the accomplishment of work and daily chores. Rural 21 agreed. The result is an initial request to P4P for 500 bicycles to establish a vocational educational program repairing and selling bicycles for local distribution.

P4P is presently seeking the $5,000 in funding necessary to finance an initial shipment and effectively capitalize a new project. If you would like to support Marc’s efforts, and those of Rural 21 and the people of Stefan Voda, send a check with the notation “Moldova” to Pedals for Progress, Box 312, High Bridge NJ 08829-0312.

bicycles, Dominican Republic

Haitian Immigrants in the Dominican Republic

Winter 2001 InGear
2001winterHaitiDominicanRepublicBiemboBiembo Olivé is a twenty-five-year-old Haitian immigrant who works as a day laborer on local rice plantations. He lives in the part of Boca de Mao called El Batey; the name comes from the time when it housed the Haitian workers who cut sugar cane in the state-owned plantations. Rice, bananas, yuccas and plantains have replaced sugar in this region of the Dominican Republic, but immigrants like Biembo still supply much of the labor.

As a day laborer harvesting rice, Biembo usually earns 100 pesos ($6 US) a day. Paying car fare out of that would cost him 20 pesos daily, and given that option before having the bike, he usually walked.

He came to the Dominican Republic from Cape Haitian, his birthplace, two years ago. He came “Buscando la vida” as the expression here goes, “Looking for a living”. What money he can save from his earnings, he sends to his family in Haiti, toward the construction of a better house there.

2001winterHaitiDominicanRepublicRosa

Rosa Pye is a twenty-two-year-old Haitian immigrant who works washing clothes by hand, and also as a field laborer on local rice or tobacco farms. Her husband is twenty-one, Haitian, and works as a day laborer as well.

“I use the bicycle to take meals to my husband in the fields and also for me to get to work”, she says. The trip to the rice fields takes from 30 minutes to an hour on foot. Riding the bike, she arrives in 10 to 20 minutes. Before owning the bike, on days when she didn’t walk to the fields, she paid 20 pesos for car fare. A day in the fields has recently been netting them 80 pesos daily.

Rosa comes from a family of eight children in a small town in northern Haiti near the Haitian–Dominican border. She has been traveling to and from the Dominican Republic to work for the past five years. She met her husband in the D.R. on one of her first trips when she came to work bundling tobacco and picking tomatoes. She says that life here is a little easier.

bicycles

Afribike: Improving School Attendance through Bicycles

Fall 2001 InGear

In rural South Africa, it is not uncommon for primary and secondary school students to live many miles from their school, and to spend precious hours walking between home and academics. Few South African schools can afford to offer bus service, or board students. Given the distances to cover on foot, many promising students have little time to complete assignments and help their families. Unsurprisingly, many rural youths cannot attend school, or drop out as they get older.

2001fallAfribikeIn an effort to improve school attendance in rural areas, the South African government has initiated a pilot program to distribute affordable bicycles to outstanding students, especially girls. Working with Afribike, a South African-based non-governmental organization (NGO), the National Roads Agency, and provincial transport departments, the National Department of Transportation (NDOT) has launched “Learners-on-Bikes”, with the initial goal of placing 10,000 students on bicycles by mid-2002. Pedals for Progress is the major source of bicycles for this new program, while NDOT will provide $300,000 in funding to cover a portion of shipping, training, and administrative costs.

Learners-on-Bikes will enable primary and secondary school students to purchase inexpensive refurbished bicycles through a combination of cash/credit (minimum contribution of US$12) and sweat equity (assisting the refurbishment and assembly of each bicycle). While the program will exclude no academically qualifying student, it will give preference to students traveling the greatest distances to school. Afribike will offer qualifying students a training course covering the benefits and opportunities of cycling, safety and maintenance/repair issues, and environmental and health impact of cycling.

Afribike will also oversee the establishment of the local “franchises”, or bicycle sales and service businesses that will refurbish the bikes. These community-owned businesses will be capitalized by bicycles and parts donated by Pedals for Progress and, in the future, other foreign sources. Each franchise receives the necessary tools and training that will see the retail operation turn into a sustainable micro-enterprise after an initial twelve-month start-up phase. Wherever possible, local women will be trained and set up as mechanics and shop managers.

Afribike will recover its initial setup investment costs, and subsequent (12-month subsidy phase) establishment cost, together with the shipping and import costs of the bicycles, from projected sales income. Each outlet/franchise will undergo periodic three-month assessments to establish its commercial viability. Close monitoring of the program will allow for strategic adjustment in the approach and also yield valuable lessons for scaling up the initiative. If successful, Afribike, in partnership with Pedals for Progress, will expand the program in 2002–2003, to a network of 80 microenterprise franchises distributing 100,000 bicycles.

For further information on the Learners-on-Wheels Program, or on Afribike in general, visit Afribike.org.

bicycles, Ghana, Peace Corps

COMWELF: Doing Well in Bawku District, Ghana

Fall 2001 InGear

As Pedals for Progress crosses the 10,000 bicycle per year production mark, Africa is receiving more and more bikes, both in total numbers and as a share of overall production. Over the last decade, seven countries in Africa—most significantly South Africa, Ghana, and Eritrea—have received 6,600 bikes, over half of them in the last 18 months since the beginning of the millennium.

2001fallGhanaBikeWsacks

In our summer 2000 issue of InGear, we featured one of our most promising partners, the Community Welfare Foundation (COMWELF) in Bawku, Ghana, and the process leading to an initial shipment taking place as we went to press. This shipment was sponsored by the Friends of Ghana, a Returned Peace Corp Volunteer group.

Because we feel it important to avoid leaving our readers the impression that our partners are temporary or that the glowing hopes reported beforehand are unfulfilled, here is a summary, and a few excerpts, from a subsequent letter and report dated April 15, 2001, received from COMWELF’s director, John Atibila.

Mr. Atibila began providing some basic statistics and the results of a beneficiary survey. The bikes were popular; of 458 bikes received, 420 were sold within six months. The survey revealed that of 25 interviewed, 21 were male, four female. Respondents indicated multiple use; 80% used bikes to go to work on their farms, 72% in going to markets for selling or shopping, 24% in going to school, 20% going to church, 16% going for medical treatment, and 12% for recreation. According to the report, traders earned 70–100% more income by getting to markets easily and early.

2001fallGhanaBikeWcans

Still others saved money by doing without the local bus. Of those surveyed, 85% claimed having a bike raised their social status and 100% reported that the bikes were “very important.”

Mr. Atibila further stated: “We would like to continue with the bikes project. We now have sufficient funds to order container #2. In addition, we have surplus funds of [$1,000] for our poverty alleviation fund, which provides microcredit to rural women… Thank you for your donation.”

Specifically, COMWELF is seeking two containers of 450 bicycles apiece per year, with which it will train 10 additional bike mechanics and hold the Bawku Zone First Annual Cycling Competition, scheduled December 2001. The objectives will be to make COMWELF the leading bicycle distributor in Northern Ghana, support community development and employment in the region, and generate increasing revenue from the project, “which can support rural micro-enterprise development to alleviate poverty and ensure food security.” So far, so good! Stay tuned!

bicycles

A Note from GoodWill in Panama

by Tom Ford, board member, Asociación Panamena de Industrias de Buena Voluntad
Fall 2001 InGear

We are anxiously awaiting the arrival of our third container. Despite the fact that we cannot meet the demand for mountain bikes, the public has reacted very favorably to our super prices as a great transportation alternative.

Distribution has included almost all sectors of the Panamanian economy and geography. P4P bikes can be found along small rural roads as well as on wide city streets. Many of the users are first-time owners who have found the bikes to be satisfying both emotionally and economically. A typical case is that of Jose Luis Bethancourt.

2001fallPanamaSeventeen-year-old Jose is the youngest of four brothers born to parents of scant economic means. Since his early childhood Jose worked at sundry jobs ranging from fisherman to car-washer to help make ends meet at home. His desire to go back to school was so great that he struggled, successfully, to obtain a grant and was able to begin his studies anew. But the time required in attending school reduced his ability to contribute to the family income, and he was considering dropping out of school again.

P4P came to the rescue when Jose obtained his first-ever bike. He saved money by not paying bus fares and was able to work longer because the easily maneuverable bike makes the trip to school through Panama’s traffic jams in half the time. Back at work while remaining a student, Jose has once again become an important provider for the family. He boasts about his new-found luxury so much that his friends tease him about his newly gained mobility in his P4P “automobile”. Definitely a satisfied customer!

bicycles, Guatemala

A Case Study in Monitoring and Evaluation: Guatemala

Fall 2001 InGear

In November, 1999, P4P began shipping to FIDESMA (Fundación Integral de Desarrollo y Medio Ambiente). The first container of 438 bicycles was sponsored by the Golden Rule Foundation; a second shipment of 519 bikes was paid for in part by FIDESMA and partially by the Koinonia Foundation.

FIDESMA serves the highland indigenous community of San Andrés Itzapa, Chimaltenango, providing agricultural extension and other education services, small enterprise assistance, and other community development services. P4P shipped the first container based on a brief proposal from the Guatemalan organization. Due to the isolation of the community and the limited financial capacity of FIDESMA, as well as the linguistic and cultural gulf between the two partners, subsequent communication was sparse, and PfP had little idea of the impact of the first shipment other than that FIDESMA desired another shipment – generally a good indicator!

2001fallGuatemala

Finally, in March 2001, FIDESMA submitted a substantive report. For P4P, it was worth the wait, as the information presented was extensive and appears to justify the investment. Included in the report was a detailed inventory breaking down bikes by category, whether or not they had been sold, etc., per container. The information enabled P4P to better assess its own effectiveness and characteristics in collecting, selecting, and packing, as well as to assess the impact of the bicycles overseas and the potential for sustainability of the relationship.

FIDESMA reported that the project was able to cover its costs, and hence appeared likely to be sustainable. The reported commercial value of the contents of each container ranged from slightly over $12,000 to almost $15,000 (since that time, improvements in packing and the addition of large quantities of valuable new parts donated by the US bike industry has augmented the value of shipments). The reported costs—including not just recurring operating and shipping expenses but also a value-added tax to be rebated and one-time investments in facilities and tools—were under $10,000 per container. We found out more about beneficiaries. FIDESMA reported that 40% of the purchasers were farmers, 25% students, 30% laborers and tradesmen, and 5% working women. Shop employment comprised a mechanic/shop administrator and mechanic’s assistant, supplemented by three full-time apprentices and two part-time apprentices. FIDESMA is seeking a training institute to certify a six-month bike mechanic’s apprenticeship course.

FIDESMA interviewed half a dozen recipients of bicycles and shared the notes with P4P. All were positive, citing the savings in time getting to work, doing errands for the family, and getting to school. Edwin Paulich Velázquez, for example, reported spending as much as four hours daily on his bike, using it principally to cover the five kilometers to work. Not everyone uses the bike solely for work however. Another respondent — Carlos Arnoldo Bueno, who also uses his bike to get to work — specifically mentioned his newfound ability to engage in competitive racing.

José Siquinajay is the local mail carrier. Twenty-nine-years-old and married, José has for several years managed San Andres Itzapa’s mail and telegraph services. Each day he opens the post office and attends to the communication needs of the town. Twice weekly, he goes by bus to nearby Chimaltenango, the provincial seat, to pick up the mail. On his return, he utilizes his bike, obtained through FIDESMA, to deliver the mail throughout the town, covering distances up to two kilometers and up and down steep inclines. According to José, he saves time, gets the mail faster and sooner to customers, and is getting in good physical shape.

Finally, FIDESMA cited the long-term institutional benefits. Not only did the project benefit the community and raise the local group’s profile, the non-profit institution’s skills also strengthened it in business and project management, dealing with government institutions such as Customs and the Ministry of Finance, and generating income for institutional overhead.

bicycles, Ghana

Creating Hope in Ada, Ghana

by Lomo Tanihu
Fall 2001 InGear

I am Lomo Tanihu, now 19. I left school ten years ago when my parents could no longer afford to send me. I cannot read or write. In spite of this setback, I decided then that even if I did not go to school, I would still be somebody. But instead of achieving through learning, I would do it through bike-riding.

Bikes are expensive in Ghana, and my parents were too poor to buy one. One member of my family, my Uncle Tetteh, did own a bike, which he used to get to work and to market. From early on, I dreamed of owning one. During my teenage years, I would wake up at 4am so that I could ride my uncle’s bike before he departed for work.

Then one day late last year, I heard on the radio that the NekoTech Center was having a bicycle race and ride for HIV/AIDS awareness. I knew little about NekoTech and little about HIV/AIDS, but a lot about bike racing. The best part was that for 2000 cedis (20 cents) every village kid who did not own a bike could ride for the day…and you could choose your own bike!

Princess Asie, the director of NekoTech, explained to us that Pedals for Progress and Johnson & Johnson helped to bring this chance to Ada. We were also told that the first prize for the race was one million cedis. ($150!) I had never ever held that kind of money before! Most people in the village earn 100,000 to 400,000 cedis per month ($15–$60).

I can never forget that day. The whole village came to life; over 1000 kids came to the center. Only the first 250, registering on a first come-first serve basis, could qualify; many were turned away.

I was there first, four hours before the opening of the center. I had the chance to choose the first bike. Over the years, I had learned how to repair bikes. I had taught myself everything I could about bikes. I chose a red and white Schwinn racer, and serviced it. When I signed up, I even received a PfP t-shirt. I took this as a good sign!

I had promised myself that I would win the first prize and buy this very bike! I could feel so much closer to my dream. We had two weeks to prepare. I woke up every morning at 3am to practice for speed and endurance. On January 26, 2001, the biggest day of my life arrived. I did not ride my uncle’s bike to NekoTech—rather, I walked—because I was determined to win the race and purchase and bring home my Schwinn. Perhaps you will not be surprised I won the race and one million cedis ($150), and immediately bought my Schwinn! I did not know whether to ride the Schwinn or to carry it. I have never experienced such joy in all my 19 years. I had now understood the meaning of having a dream come true!

Since that day, my life has changed in many ways. The local radio mentioned my accomplishment almost ten times. I was shown on national TV!! Best yet, I reconciled with my parents. My father asked me to move back into his house. I am treated like royalty now in my father’s house. I gave part of my winnings to my uncle, whose bike I had borrowed to become a champion.

NekoTech now employs me to repair bikes and to teach other young school dropouts bicycle repair. I was also elected President of the NekoTech Winners Club, a bike club with a mission to educate Ghanaian youth about HIV/AIDS.

The NekoTech “Save a Million Lives” program has brought hope to many in Ada. Beyond HIV/AIDS education and recreation, bikes are used to produce income. Farmers are taught how to carry produce by bike; women and mothers have been taught to ride for the first time. Children ride to school sometimes over six miles instead of walking. The program has given many families a chance to own a bike for the first time. We are all happy about the program and pray for more bikes to come to Ada. The program has also brought hope to me. I am now determined to learn how to read and write. I know that with NekoTech’s assistance, I can do it!

bicycles, Senegal

P4P and Rotary in Senegal!

Summer/Fall 1999 InGear

1999summerFallSenegalIn early 1999, P4P made its first shipment—440 bikes—to the West African coastal nation of Senegal. The recipient—the Association des Bacheliers pour L’Emploi et le Developpement (ABACED)—is a non-profit agency, established in 1985 by 20 young Senegalese professionals, which manages programs in savings mobilization and credit, environmental protection, and education, particularly with disadvantaged women and youth. ABACED’s new project reconditions P4P-donated bicycles, generating local employment, and provides them at low cost to urban street vendors, rural farmers producing vegetables for urban markets, and other disadvantaged microentrepreneurs.