Bicycles Can Alleviate Poverty In Developing Countries

There are many charity organisations worldwide which send new or second hand bicycles to people in need.

Having the freedom of mobility changes lives.

People living in developing countries often have no access to public transport. Frequently there just isn’t a

public transport system, especially in remote, rural areas, or they cannot afford it.

A bike can save a life by quickly summoning help. Having the freedom of mobility changes lives.

WHEELS 4 LIFE

• Have donated almost 7,000 bikes in twenty different countries

• They are proud of the fact that between 90% and 95% of money donated goes directly into the purchase of bikes

• Works with local organisations who help them identify which people will benefit most from receiving a bike

WORLD BICYCLE RELIEF

Frederick R. W. Day

• One of the founder brothers of Sram, (the second largest bicycle component manufacturer in the world)

• Sri Lanka after the 2004 tsunami

– Ended up producing 24,450 bicycles at under $100 each and it was mainly Sram’s customers who donated money for the project

• Zambia in 2006

– has successfully put 30,000 sturdy bicycles into Zambia and has even trained mechanics, so most areas are covered

• By the end of 2014, World Bicycle Relief had distributed over 200,000 bicycles and trained over 1,000 mechanics.

BICYCLES FOR HUMANITY (B4H)

• Has fifty chapters in various countries – Hong Kong, Japan, Spain, the Netherlands, Germany, Ireland, Switzerland, Italy, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Mexico and the States

• Asks for people to give them their old bikes, preferably in working condition. These bikes are then shipped in a container with lots of spare parts.

• On arrival the container becomes the bicycle workshop and is called the bicycle empowerment centre. – Gives local employment but also enables lucky bicycle recipients to

have their bikes regularly serviced

RE-CYCLE – BIKES TO AFRICA

Merlin Matthews is the founder

• Took over the reins of Dr. Bike

– It meant that every Friday evening Matthews would teach people to fix their bikes in exchange for beers.

• First big shipment was to South Africa at the request of ITDP, where they set up Afribike, an independent organisation which distributed bicycles in the country.

• Re-Cycle asks that people donate used bikes or £15, which is the cost of getting one bike to Africa.

RE-CYCLE CYCLES ROUND THE WORLD

Gary Taylor

• Set off on a round the world cycle trip with the intention of raising money for Re-Cycle (Feb. 22)

• Why he chose Re-Cycle as his charity: “For me a big thing is that Re-Cycle are focused on more sustainable solutions, rather than just handouts. “

PEDALS FOR PROGRESS (P4P)

• Rescues bikes heading for landfills, repairs them and then sends them to countries that need them

• Adapts bikes so they can be used for other purposes such as rubbish collection, taxis or delivering produce.

• P4P Spokesperson: “If a person would like to have a bicycle but cannot pay for it, that person has to work for the bicycle shop (and learn and new skill) in order to cover the cost of the bike”

BIKES FOR THE WORLD

• Was started in 2005 by Keith Oberg and just donated its 100,000th bike to Gerardo Jesus who lives in Costa Rica.

– Gerardo has worked exceptionally hard at school and won a scholarship to a bi-lingual school in another community

– Unfortunately the distance was too great for Gerardo and he wasn’t about to take up his place

BIKES NOT BOMBS

• One of the oldest organisations involved in donating bikes to developing countries and to projects in the States

• Began in 1984 and collect around 6,000 used bikes every year which are either sent to their partners in developing countries or used in the States for community projects.

• They encourage people to search their local newspapers and online adverts for giveaway bikes

LEARN MORE!

Visit this blog page to read the entirety of the article with all the tidbits of information you need to know about organisations that send new or second hand bicycles to people in need:

http://tuvizo.com/the-historical-timeline-of-bicycle-and-cycling