I have written about Bicycles for Humanity before. This is a cause that we support whole-heartedly.

Have you ever given anything to a charity with the knowledge that your donation would be utilized 100%? Probably not.

This is precisely why I am a supporter of Bicycles for Humanity.

A little bit about Bicycles for Humanity

Bicycles for Humanity Ottawa is a grass-roots initiative with a meaningful objective – to improve lives by empowering communities in Africa with their own transport and the means to maintain it. B4H sends used bikes to improve access to healthcare, education, food, water and employment.

A little history

Bicycles for Humanity (B4H) began when a group of like-minded Canadians became interested in the issue of transport in developing countries, and the role that bicycles could play. Affordable transport is a crucial missing link for the world’s poorest people when accessing healthcare, education, water and economic opportunities. Bicycles offer the most affordable means of transport in sub-Saharan Africa, traveling at least twice as fast, three times further and carrying four times the load of a person walking.

B4H contacted many grassroots organizations in Africa, particularly those focussed on HIV/AIDS healthcare, and providing support to the millions of AIDS orphans on the continent. These groups coordinate volunteer networks, over 90 percent women, who walk long distances to support people affected by the disease, and educate communities in preventing its spread.

The connection was obvious: supply the grassroots organizations with bicycles and the means to maintain them, and their volunteers would become more effective in their work.

B4H contacted community groups throughout Canada and through these groups found hundreds of others were keen to help too, by collecting donated bicycles, loading them into shipping containers and sending them to partners in Africa. Other groups are starting in the US, UK and Europe.

B4H has developed into a set of independent chapters, working together to share ideas and provide support. The chapters have access to web space and a set of tools that allows a community group, church, business organization, school or service club anywhere to collect and ship bicycles to developing countries.

The Bicycle Empowerment Centre (BEC)

Each year, millions of people in North America, Europe, the UK and Australia buy new bicycles. Many are upgrades for bikes that still function perfectly well, or are given as gifts that end up unused in garages or simply forgotten in basements.

Meanwhile millions of Africans walk long distances each day to fetch clean water, deliver their produce to market, get to school or work, and to provide healthcare to people living with killer diseases like HIV/AIDS and malaria.

Shipping bicycles to Africa is a start, but it is not enough. Bicycles need repair, maintenance and a safe storage place while mechanics need training, tools and spare parts.

B4H has developed a package that addresses all of these issues. The Bicycle Empowerment Centre (BEC) is a bicycle workshop in a 40ft shipping container stocked with 300-400 bicycles, tools and spare parts, delivered directly to an African village, where it becomes a workshop and storage facility for local community based health care organizations. Accompanied by comprehensive training in bicycle mechanics and project management, it empowers people with their own transport and a way to maintain it.

B4H in Ottawa

Bicycles for Humanity – Ottawa was formed in the spring of 2007 by two friends who share a deep desire to make a difference in the developing world.

The first Ottawa BEC was sent in October 2007 and has been delivered to a community in Rundu, Namibia, called House of Love for Orphans and Vulnerable Children (HLOVC). This community of volunteers runs a kindergarten, orphan feeding program, supplies school uniforms and makes home visits to support orphans and develop their life skills. A 4week training program on bicycle mechanics has recently been completed to help them maintain their new mobility.

The 2008 BEC is currently in progress – collected bicycles, spare parts and tools will be loaded on to the container and shipped to Windhoek, Namibia on September 27th, 2008.

B4H plans to send one container per year to selected communities in Africa. Entirely volunteer run, 100% of all donations go directly toward the transportation costs of the bikes

For more information visit the Bicycles for Humanity website

Along the same lines.....

• August 29, 2010 -- Bicycle Portraits – Everyday South Africans and their Bicycles. A Photographic Book.
• September 1, 2008 -- Bicycles for Humanity Ottawa – September Bicycle Drive
• August 11, 2008 -- Cycling – Bicycles for Humanity – a worthwhile cause
• April 17, 2010 -- Philanthropic Pedaling – Cyclists to Bike Through Italy to Aid a Rural Village in Namibia
• June 20, 2009 -- Ottawa Cycling Unsafe and Dangerous for Cyclists
• May 31, 2009 -- Ottawa Cycling – Go Green Go Dutch Go Bike – The Main Event
• May 20, 2009 -- Ottawa – Bicycles for Humanity Bike Drive
• April 25, 2009 -- Cycling in Ottawa – Lifestyle or Necessity?
• April 16, 2009 -- Competitive Cycling – How Did I Get Myself Into This?
• January 26, 2009 -- Cycling Safety – LightLane – a Cool Concept