Village Bicycle Project, Inc.

Village Bicycle Project helps empower people and communities by providing donated used bicycles in Ghana and Sierra Leone. VBP bik...Learn more

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Charlotte Fagan is fundraising
Getting Girls on Bikes in Suhom, Ghana
Over the past 25 years, Village Bicycle Project has distributed over 130,000 bikes to Ghana and Sierra Leone. Our goal is always to deliver 50 percent of the bikes to women and girls in any participating community – and sometimes that means taking time, resources and community commitment to address gender gaps in cycling.

Earlier this year, we visited Suhum in Ghana, about 40 miles north of Accra. We had planned to deliver 100 bikes to students, equally to boys and girls. Unfortunately, we realized none of the girls signed up for the program knew how to ride a bike. We completed the program, distributing the bikes to male students, and committed to coming back to the community to address this gender disparity with a holistic approach.

Addressing the gender gap in cycling begins with Learn to Ride. Over a series of months, our trainers will teach Learn to Ride classes to girls in the community, making sure every girl who wants to learn can. Then, we will conduct another series of one-day workshops, distributing bikes to the girls who were unable to participate the first time. Lastly, we will start a bike library at the school, where we long-term loan bikes to students, boys and girls, to use to travel back and forth to school.

Suhom is just one community, but we take this holistic approach to get girls on bikes everywhere we work in Ghana and Sierra Leone. Your donation ensures that in every community we visit, girls get the support they need to access biking as a tool for education. When students receive a bike, their grades and attendance improve, and the likelihood that they continue with their education increases.

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48 supporters
Charlotte Fagan is fundraising
5000 Bicycles to Ghana and Sierra Leone
By the end of 2022, we plan to distribute 5000 bicycles Ghana and Sierra Leone, but we need your help to make sure we can deliver on this goal!

With rising fuel costs, the communities we work in are seeking out bicycles now more than ever. From students getting to school, farmers bringing goods to the market or a healthcare worker going to the clinic, the cost of transportation is rising. But the cost of fueling a bicycle is the same - free.

Like the rest of the world, supply chain disruptions and inflation have severely impacted Sierra Leone and Ghana. This has steeply increased our costs to provide high-quality bikes and programming to rural communities at a time when people need affordable transportation more than ever. This is why we're making this special appeal to our friends and family to help close the $5000 gap in our budget to address these increased costs.
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27 supporters
Joshua Poppel is fundraising
Empowering Women through Bikes in Sierra Leone
We know that getting women on bikes might seem small, but we also know that in rural communities a bike is the key to unlock countless opportunities for education, health and wellbeing. That’s why we have a holistic approach to women’s bicycle empowerment based on knowledge, transportation, economic opportunity, and fun.

Who we are: For the last 20 years, Village Bicycle Project (VBP) has been providing bicycles, tools and training to communities in West Africa. We have distributed over 126,000 bicycles, trained over 21,000 people in basic bicycle repair, and taught more than 4,000 women and girls how to ride a bike.

Our approach: We have been developing our 4-prong approach to getting more women on bikes for the past few years, and in 2020 we are excited to expand our programming in Sierra Leone. Help us reach more women than ever before!

1. Learn to Ride Programs for school age girls:
There are a number of cultural stigma that hinder women from learning how to ride a bicycle. Our Learn to Ride (L2R) Programs give them that opportunity in a supportive women’s only class.

2. Bicycle Distribution Workshops for women of all ages:
Our standard One Day Workshop (ODW) provides participants with a bicycle and a half day’s maintenance training so they can keep their bike in good working order. A major focus of our ODWs has been school-age students with a particular emphasis on young women.

3. Advanced Mechanical Repair classes for women bike entrepreneurs:
For those women that have shown an interest and aptitude in bicycle repair, we offer a full day Advanced Mechanical Training and support in opening their own shops. We are proud to have launched the first women owned bike businesses in Sierra Leone!

4. Development of women's bike racing through the Lunsar Cycling Team:
The Lunsar Cycling Team is a local team in central Sierra Leone that has become one of the premier cycling organizations in the country. Women make up about 25% of the team and have consistently won the national cycling championship raising the profile of women's' cycling and breaking down stereotypes that keep women from riding.

Our goal is to raise $5,000 which covers the cost of shipping a container of 500 bikes and gear to Sierra Leone. That container and the associated revenue will supply bicycles and funds for one year of women’s bike programming. With a container dedicated to funding women’s bicycle programming, it will enable VBP to plan for program expansion for the entire year.

Want to read more? Check out these articles about Karim Kamara, our Sierra Leone Country Manager, as reported by Vice and Cycling Tips .

Your support is vital to helping us reach more women in Sierra Leone than ever before, please donate today.
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94 supporters

About Village Bicycle Project, Inc.

Village Bicycle Project helps empower people and communities by providing donated used bicycles in Ghana and Sierra Leone. VBP bike recipients usually walk most places they go, as much as 10-12 miles per day. Along with bicycles, we provide hands-on maintenance training for new owners, and we teach girls and women to ride their bikes. We give village bike mechanics detailed training along with specialized bike tools and spare parts. This comprehensive, holistic approach ensures that bikes will be dependable, affordable and sustainable transportation. Women and girls are specifically targeted for inclusion in programs which begin to address the gender inequalities that limit their access to bicycles.

1915 11th ave eseattle, WA 98102

Find Village Bicycle Project, Inc. at

Causes

Human services, Civic participation, Community improvement, Unknown or not classified

Established

2009

Tax ID

26-3547300

NTEE code

Alliance/Advocacy Organizations

Village Bicycle Project, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) public charity, EIN 26-3547300. Donations are tax-deductible. Select content is provided by GuideStar.

Recent Donations

David Patterson donated to Getting Girls on Bikes in Suhom, Ghana
$251 yr
Charlotte Fagan donated to Getting Girls on Bikes in Suhom, Ghana
$3021 yr
Joshua Poppel donated to Getting Girls on Bikes in Suhom, Ghana
$5001 yr
Kristin Zarr donated to Getting Girls on Bikes in Suhom, Ghana
$501 yr
James May donated to Getting Girls on Bikes in Suhom, Ghana
$1001 yr
Grant Register donated to Getting Girls on Bikes in Suhom, Ghana
$1001 yr
Anonymous donated to Getting Girls on Bikes in Suhom, Ghana
$101 yr
Lisa Shilts donated to Getting Girls on Bikes in Suhom, Ghana
$201 yr
Theodore Mallasch donated to Getting Girls on Bikes in Suhom, Ghana
$501 yr
Jena Coats donated to Getting Girls on Bikes in Suhom, Ghana
$201 yr