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Bicycle author Sam Tracy recently wrote to us from his current outpost in Africa working with the Peace Corps to bring a bicycle repair class to Mauritania. Taught through a local trade-school, this class is meant to show students basic repair techniques using proper tools, allowing them to walk away with the skills necessary to work as a bicycle mechanic and furthering the use of bicycles in this underdeveloped country. Park Tool is helping the project stock up on tools, but donations are needed to fully fund the discounted tools and ship them overseas. Donations are needed to meet the modest $1567 purchase a reality – read more about the project and lend a few dollars if you can at the Peace Corps official website.
Sam Tracy:
The class will be hosted at CFPP – Atar, a popular and well-established local trade school. It will run from October through June 2010, and it will strive to cover all aspects of bicycle repair that would be of use, locally. I will be developing the curriculum myself, over the next several months. I will teach in French; CFPP staff will translate to Hassaniya. Bike repair requires a number of specialized tools not commonly available in Mauritania, and Park Tool of Saint Paul, MN has come through with a very generous discount on all the equipment needed, which will be delivered via diplomatic pouch. This is the part where I ask you for money – $1,567 is needed to purchase the tools. This would cover 3 sets of everything needed to competently repair bicycles – repair stands, wheel truing stands and all manner of hand tools. One set of tools would stay with the school for future classes, and the others will be presented to class participants upon graduation.
applaud the effort, and suggest a quick review of Village Bicycle Project’s program in Ghana, where they’ve had great success with a similar approach.
http://www.ghanabikes.org/
We’ve followed the results of their efforts in one community through the film “Ayamye”.
http://www.ayamye.org
From a boots-on-the-ground perspective I can say that the concept works, and it doesn’t require expensive or brand-name tools to do the job – any affordable bike tool will be put to use, even ones that we here in North America might consider ‘off brand’. Kudos to Sam Tracy and a suggestion that it might be worth asking folks (esp.shops) to simply donate used tools for shipment to compliment the Park supply.
Viva