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World Bicycle Relief launching campaign to provide bicycles to students in Malawi

  • Ron 

Today, World Bicycle Relief announces Wheels in the Field: Malawi – Breaking the Cycle, its July campaign to raise funds and provide life-changing bicycles for girl students in need. All funds raised in July, up to $200,000 USD, will be matched dollar for dollar by Backroads, citizenM Hotels, Quad Lock, and a group of generous individual supporters. World Bicycle Relief is also partnering with FHI 360, a non-profit dedicated to improving lives through locally-driven solutions, to implement a community-led program around reproductive health designed to improve the education, health, and economic future of students in Malawi.

In Malawi, systemic gender inequalities hold girls back in a variety of ways, particularly when it comes to education and sexual health. Forty-six percent of children in Malawi do not finish primary school while 42% of Malawian girls are married by age 18. Adolescent girls and young women also face a disproportionate risk of acquiring HIV as well as shouldering the burden of care and support for those living with HIV in Malawi. By distributing 70% of Buffalo Bicycles to girl students and offering strong, group-based mentorship programs, the World Bicycle Relief community can help girls achieve their educational dreams, build self-esteem, and break the cycle of poverty and HIV.

“A quality bicycle can have a transformational impact on students in Malawi where the average journey to school ranges from three to ten kilometers,” said World Bicycle Relief CEO Dave Neiswander. “By utilizing the bicycle to increase access to educational health programs as well, we hope to not only improve academic performance and attendance, but to ensure bright futures for these students.”

Access to a high-quality bicycle can reduce a child’s commute time to school by up to 75% and dramatically changes educational, health and economic outcomes. Specifically, a bicycle can help students overcome distance, time, and safety barriers to completing their education, gain independent access to reproductive health counseling and services, and also improve attendance, retention, and academic performance. World Bicycle Relief’s Bicycles for Educational Empowerment Program (BEEP), which launched in Malawi in 2016, has so far mobilized 3,100 students in Malawi with durable, reliable Buffalo Bicycles to help them complete their education.

Help spread the word. Sign up to fundraise. Share our Wheels in the Field: Malawi – Breaking the Cycle campaign on social media. Together, we can reach our goal of providing 3,400 more bicycles and brighter futures for Malawian students. Together, we can make a world of difference.

To get involved, visit: https://worldbicyclerelief. org/break-the-cycle

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