10,000 Bikes for Madagascar

Ten years ago Bikes for the World sent our first bicycle to Madagascar. It was in connection with a health focused project established by USAID. Rural health clinics received brand new bicycles through the USAID funded project. In order to maintain those bicycles, shipping containers were converted into rural bike shops, known as eBoxes, in four communities who then also received donated used bikes to help supplement the program.

In that initial partnership, Bikes for the World sent our first container to be shared among two communities in 2015. We followed in 2016 with a second container.  FYI, that first container was loaded by Taylor Jones, our Operations Manager. He is now the Executive Director. As the project evolved,  the USAID management was handed down to the co-ops who continued to maintain the projects in some communities. Having Taylor on board, who speaks French, helped maintain and grow our involvement in the bike project. In 2023 we added a new Malagasy partner, bringing the total number of communities to receive bikes from BfW to six.

That container was donated to a region called Ambanja and arrived back in April of 2023. It contained our 10,000th bike donated to Madagascar. We finished out 2023, loading one of our final 21 containers of the year- a resupply of bikes to this newest (to us) co-op Ambanja.

Our first container of 2024 is also heading to Madagascar. This will be our 25th container donated to the northern regions of Madagascar since that first shipment in 2015. With this shipment, BfW will have donated over 12,000 bikes in support of this vital health focused project.

Marotia (bottom left photo) was one of the first beneficiaries to receive a bike in Ambanja. Marotia has always dreamed of owning a bicycle so she could play with the other children. Her family makes less than $50 a month and they were never able to afford such an expensive toy. Since the new eBox bike shop opened in Madagascar her family was finally able to make her dream come true. And this quality bike from BfW will also help with family errands and travel to school.

Read more beneficiary stories here from Ambanja.