Grassroots work leads to great results
Muhammad Yunus offset an established order or banking by offer credit to people with no collateral. Known as Microfinance, this surprisingly successful enterprise was a revolution in the industry. Our work greatly benefits from this concept; we establish relationships with individuals who could benefit from bicycles, and find a good compromise to support them. Movement Bikes has been working with Ringroad School and Oasis of Hope, and we are proud to be ahead of repayment schedule.
We understand that individuals’ lives don’t always go as planned. In the passed months there have been unforeseen financial burdens, work changes, and deaths. Yet, Movement Bikes understands that there are bumps in the roads. So far, we have overcome all challenges and have had only positive reports about the product. Working closely with our customers is extremely important to us, and we value relationships and feedback.
Just like Muhammad Yunus’s Grameen Bank, people thought such work would be too risky. We are happy to follow those footsteps, and work with individuals no matter their background. We believe it to be a great success to be ahead of payment schedules and to have affected so many lives positively.
The Global Network
Much change has taken place in recent years regarding our understanding of social networks and group association. In today’s world, you can have over 500 friends on facebook, speak with them on Skype as if they are next to you, or twitter the world the latest news. It’s easy to have friends across the globe, and to keep in touch with them.
A different story is working across the globe. Skyping is a possibility, and exchanging emails with information is quick and easy. But what about Africa, where electricity (let alone internet) is difficult to have?! Surely, in big cities anywhere in the world you can find computers, internet, and the like — but working intercontinentally with Africa is still an exciting challenge.
Movement Bikes has rolled out it’s initial deliveries, and is now focusing on gathering data on its product. The OGRA Foundation is monitoring individuals that have received bicycles in the hopes to analyze the value bicycles bring from an economic perspective. Other partners are providing updates as well, adding to the large number of feedback we have already received on the products. Enjoy an overview of our new partnerships and important events from the summer in our Pilot Project Media Report.
Kenya’s Countryside
From the sandy beaches of Mombasa, through the breathtaking Rift valley, the rolling hills of Kericho, and the green highland by Lake Victoria — Kenya’s Countryside is beautiful wherever you are.
On a recent tour through some villages, we visited one of OGRA’s health clinics some 50 km from Kisumu. Around that area, the sense of peace and simple life encourages a real stillness of the mind. There are birds singing far in the distance, and you might hear some water running close by, but besides that, it’s only the branches that move with the breeze. We met farmers that run sugarcane plantations, and people planting maze. Next to the farms, you find the small homes that have been built out of wattle and daub. The cookers are carefully placed over little fires that still smolder from the night before. There are small buckets of water in the corners, and if you look around, you often spot a bicycle leaning on the backside of the house.
Such life is very simply. But it’s more than that; it’s idyllic and peaceful. The relationship to your neighbor is not confined to discussing politics; there are real issues like snakes in the farms that are topic of discussion. Kenyans value and depend on the people living close to them, which is why villagers have such strong bonds.
I heard the story about 10,000 farmers working for a sugarcane factory, which unfortunately was closed some 20 years ago. Although people lost their jobs and had no place to go, they simply stayed on their land. Many years later, the formerly clean roads are deteriorating, and the factory is rusting in the distance. Hardships come in many forms, but people survive and support each other.
The countryside demonstrates Kenya’s greatest amount of poverty and disparity, but it also offers a peaceful life that can’t be found in hectic cities. Sometimes having less can be having a lot more.
Ringroad Orphanage and School Group Receives Microfinance Bicycles
Naturally, the Movemement Bikes team is always proud when a group of youth receives brand new bicycles. Teachers and students at Ringroad Orphanage and School received new bikes this week, which they will pay off gradually over the next six months through a monitored microfinance loan. The bicycles will allow them to safe money on journeys to and from school, and be more efficient with their time. The value and empowerment that comes with these bikes is often underestimated, but you get some idea when you see the smiles of the new owners.
Warehouse at Silverline Services
We couldn’t do our work without our partners and supporters. That is as true for donors and fundraisers, or our helpful team, as it is for people who help with logistics. Silverline Services Ltd. has donated warehouse space for our pilot project in the heart of Kisumu. With security and ample space, Silverline has given us invaluable support.
Silverline is a reknown Toyota dealer and service location in Kisumu. Originally introduced through Sunit Patel in Colordo, his brother Sunay and family have been taking care of us in Kenya. We highly recommend their fair and high quality service to anyone in need of vehicle assistance.
