KUMASI, Ghana, March 13, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Officials of
the African Bicycle Contribution Foundation (ABCF) today visited
Ghana, from the U.S., to
participate in an event, at Boama Dumase, in Ejisu-Juabeng
Municipal, Ashanti Region, as part of a two-day program in which
ABCF will distribute a total of 50 additional free bamboo bikes in
Ejisu, today, and next week, at the Kumbungu Senior High School, in
Ghana's Northern Region.
A. Bruce Crawley and PatrĂcia
Marshall Harris, the board chair and
executive director, respectively, of ABCF, joined Bernice Dapaah, CEO of Ghana Bamboo Bikes
Initiative (GBBI), the manufacturer of the iconic, Ghanaian-made
Eco-Ride bamboo bicycle; Ms. Ama Pomaah
Andoh, member of parliament, Juabeng Constituency; Mr.
Edward Adams, Ejisu-Juabeng
Municipal Director of Education; Duampopo Chief Nana Adjei Bieni; Nana
Abanquah Ababio, Boama Dumase Traditional Area; and other
distinguished Ghanaian leaders, at the event, which saw the 240th
ABCF-funded, free bamboo bicycle distributed to under-resourced
students, teachers, small farmers and healthcare workers, in rural
Ghana.
In addition to 39 bicycles that were distributed, today, to
students and teachers in Ejisu, GBBI officials, in a separate
event, next week, will also distribute an additional 11 of the
ABCF-funded bikes, at Kumbungu Senior High School.
In Ejisu, the student-recipients will range in age from 10-17
years old, and the distance of their commutes to and from school,
by foot, have averaged about 4.7Km (2.9 miles) per day, or 14.5
miles weekly.
In Kumbungu, the median recipient's age will be 17 years, and
the median distance traveled, on foot, to and from school,
daily, has been 24Km (14.9 miles) or about 74.5 miles per week.
Ms. Dapaah, who recently returned from a visit to London where she joined, with several other
young Ghanaian entrepreneurs, in an international trade
presentation with President Addo, provided a brief progress report
on GBBI and its partnership with ABCF, to date.
Solomon Amankwaah Owusu,
development director, GBBI, also presented a broad overview of the
efforts being made to make the company more customer- and
technologically driven, including its work with the Ghana Climate
Innovation Centre and the World Bank.
In his remarks, Mr. Crawley noted how pleased ABCF has been with
its partnership with GBBI and Bright Generation Community
Foundation, over the past 18 months. He also re-affirmed ABCF's
commitment to distribute 2500 free bamboo bicycles in Ghana over its first five years of operation.
"Nothing quite compares, however, to actually being here, in
West Africa, where our own
families originated, and from where they were sold into slavery, so
many years ago, to participate in these bike distributions,"
Crawley said. "Being able to meet with all of you, and to actually
speak to the students, today, inspires us to return home, work
harder, and create more supporters for the important work being
done on the ground, every day, by Bernice
Dapaah and her team at GBBI."
During the time they'll spend in Ghana, this week, the ABCF leaders will also
join with Ms. Dapaah, GBBI officials and previous recipients of the
ABCF bicycles in producing a video documentary about the ways in
which the Eco-Ride bicycles have affected their lives, over the
past 18 months.
Established in July 2016, the
African Bicycle Contribution Foundation is a U.S.-based 501(c)3
nonprofit corporation, whose mission is to generate funding to
underwrite the free distribution of bicycles to under-resourced
students, small farmers, and healthcare workers in West Africa. The
Corporation has made a commitment to finance the distribution of
2500 bicycles, in Ghana, over its first five years of
operation.
For additional information, please contact:
A. Bruce Crawley
African Bicycle Contribution Foundation
215-751-0140
abcrawley@m3mpr.com
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SOURCE African Bicycle Contribution Foundation