Bikes are bigger than simply providing affordable transportation to individuals. For many of our partners receiving our bike shipments, bikes serve as a catalyst for change throughout an entire community. Individual bikes, used as transportation, do impact families by saving time, energy, and money. The whole of the bike project, however, can create opportunities within small, local organizations to support bigger missions and realize change that is ongoing and sustainable within their neighborhoods. Because they are deeply rooted in the communities they serve, our partners are uniquely equipped to identify the most urgent needs and implement solutions that benefit the greatest number of people.
Rural communities often face significant barriers to accessing medical care and this is one of the main missions of most of our African partners. For over a decade Burkina Faso has been facing a humanitarian crisis that has led to displacements throughout the country. Insecurities and climate change have exacerbated the already strained health system. After the pandemic in 2020, resources were pushed beyond the brink, forcing many health centers to close. This made accessing treatment in rural pockets nearly impossible.
Looking for a community driven healthcare solution, our partner ALE in Burkina Faso leaned into Bikes for the World. ALE is transforming the power of a bike into lifesaving care for a community. They started by building a medical facility that would be accessible to their community. They are continuing to work on securing the necessary equipment to treat patients, which is an ongoing process. They used the sale of bikes to partially fund these projects.
Because the members of their community are unable to afford the care they need, ALE continues to use the proceeds from bike sales to help fund the medical center. The revenue from the bike program has funded approximately 70% of the medical center's operations. Because they are not receiving any subsidies from the Burkinabe government and many patients are unable to pay, they are hoping to increase their shipments from Bikes for the World and use our donated bikes to increase their revenue to cover more of the shortfall.
The services offered through the medical center range from surgery to preventative care. The challenges they face are reaching individuals before they become at-risk patients. The idea is to focus on preventative care to make the community healthier and less prone to expensive intensive medical care. This year ALE plans to work through awareness campaigns to reach more individuals and focus on areas like prenatal care and immunizations.
When children die from preventable diseases like malaria, it's not because the medications don't exist. Making care more accessible is a critical step in saving lives. The first step is reaching families and creating awareness over preventable diseases and what to do when a child does get sick. These are attainable goals and ALE is determined to reach them. That they are using your old bikes to do it is revolutionary.