Spotted this while browsing Oxfam.ca - also available from Oxfam GB: Bicycle Product code: OU5006HI £50.00
Give someone special a lift with an Oxfam Unwrapped bike. These two-wheeled wonders will get nurses, midwives and carers where they’re going fast. So these vitally important people spend less time travelling, and more time doing what they do best. Quick from A to B, and totally carbon-free. Miles more smiles all round.
CityCyclingEdinburgh Forum » Stuff
Give a bike (from Oxfam) for Christmas
(14 posts)-
Posted 13 years ago #
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Obviously a good idea, but the Oxfam web site is somewhat confusing -
"Delivery information:
All Oxfam Unwrapped gifts are despatched within 3 working days by 1st class post or Airmail. There is an optional delivery contribution of £1.50 per order for deliveries within the UK.Collections and deliveries are being delayed in many areas across the UK due to extreme weather conditions. Our carriers assure us that they're working hard to minimise disruption, but be advised to expect an additional delay for delivery of your order."
Um I don't really think the bike would be delivered to purchaser!!
(On the other hand I'm sure there are many people in the UK who would like such a bike for £50 - it IS a singlespeed....)
Also there is the option to tick a box "I am happy for Oxfam to use my money to fund any part of its work." -
"How should Oxfam spend your money?"
Not much point in wanting to buy something specific!
I assume that Oxfam is running its 'bicycle project' in various countries. The 'case study' mentions Malawi, are there others?
Posted 13 years ago # -
I've always hoped that Oxfam would decide how to spend the money you give them for a chicken, goat, bicycle or whatever; rather than buying an actual chicken, goat, etc.
I'd rather the money went to what was /really/ needed rather than a surplus of chickens for example (but perhaps there can never really be a surplus of any of these things).
It's effectively just a charity donation wrapped up in an exciting way. It's not like you actually get to see the goat you've 'bought' someone.
Posted 13 years ago # -
Agree with cb - I don't think I'm in a position to decide if Malawi needs bicycles, wells, emergency food rations, plows, seeds, tools, goats or chickens. If I give them £50 and they "try" to use if for a bike then I'd hope that they would take the sensible decision to spend it on what an area actually needs, rather than shipping containers of bicycles bought by well meaning people to an area that needs medical supplies.
Posted 13 years ago # -
Oh come on guys, what you describe is called a 'donation' and no one is saying you can't make one. What's wrong with them going a bit gimmicky and making 'donations in someone's name' more appropriate for holidays than funerals? Particularly given that many people feel they have/give far too much material stuff anyway.
I think we can presume that there is not likely to be such a run on ventilated pit latrines, that they run out of people needing them...
Posted 13 years ago # -
So they *won't* be sending a crate of my-first-fixies out to Malawia in my name then? Might clean up the streets of Edinburgh a bit ;)
Completely OT but I saw a folding bike for sale in Mountain Wharehouse on Princes St. It "looked" a bit like a small folder (Brompton / Moulton / Bike Friday sized), but only appeared to fold once, in the middle of the downtube. Can't remember the brand name for the life of me. Seemed to be fitted out with bargain basement plastic shimano componentry. Had look-like-Schwalbes-but-not-Schwalbes tyres.
Posted 13 years ago # -
"What's wrong with them going a bit gimmicky"
I don't think anything is wrong with that, and I think it is a great idea. I'm sure it has resulted in a lot of extra money going to good causes. It's just that, personally, I'd prefer that they made the best possible use of the money.
In fact I always assumed that they did just put the money into the general pot, but chdot's post suggests otherwise.
Posted 13 years ago # -
How such things are sourced is an interesting question. Bikes presumably shipped from somewhere? Picture on Oxfam.ca shows classic 'messenger bike', which are certainly assembled in various bits of Africa, but I don't know where the components come from. I would hazard a guess that at least in Oxfam's case most of the other goods are sourced locally, but obviously couldn't confirm that without a bit of research.
Posted 13 years ago # -
"I've always hoped that Oxfam would decide how to spend the money you give them for a chicken, goat, bicycle or whatever; rather than buying an actual chicken, goat, etc."
Yes, but.
If charities say 'give us money - these are some of the things we did in the past...', that would be fine. But this is explicitly asking for a definite sum to buy a bicycle.
It would be nice to think this real object can actually be purchased for that sum of money and delivered to a real person. (There can be no doubt that some variation of the old "sewing machine, bicycle, wife" mantra is still relevant in some parts of the world.)
It would be nice to think that the bicycles were manufactured in the destination country, but I suspect this is unlikely. It used to be the case that bicycles were exported from England (Nottingham) and China (and probably France) CKD (completely knocked down) - which meant a higher proportion of local labour input.
I'm assuming that Oxfam has identified needs for numbers of goats, bags of seed, bicycles etc. In various parts of the world. And has decided on the most cost effective and socially useful way of doing it.
This might be a single bicycle from a local bike shop or it might be a full container from China.
Such details concern me less than the idea that Oxfam is trying to encourage me (and others) to give them money because of the idea of giving someone a bicycle, but that they would really just like to be given money.
There are many charities trying get money - especially at this time of year. If this is merely 'marketing' I'm disappointed. If this is really a 'bicycle project' they are not selling it very well.
Posted 13 years ago # -
If this is really a 'bicycle project' they are not selling it very well.
Look, I'm normally the last person in the world to defend BINGOs (big international NGOs), since I find them generally uninteresting, BUT, this seems to to be a case of 'give someone something useful that will help them build a business or improve their family's life chances'.
So, no, not a bicycle project, BUT, a recognition that while a goat will help some families, a bicycle is an incredibly useful tool in much of rural and urban Africa? And what's wrong with adding bicycles, which serve a myriad of purposes to the usual litany of mosquito net, chickens, benches for schools?
Posted 13 years ago # -
"So, no, not a bicycle project"
Not in a 'this will give x bikes to x people in a finite area' sense.
BUT I assume Oxfam is big enough that they will be able to find, perhaps, 10 people a week who will benefit by using a bike. So there is presumably some sort of 'plan' - prioritise midwives or district nurses or villages more than 5 miles from the nearest market or?
If it was 'well we did it once, so please tick the box so we can spend your money how we want' then I'm not impressed.
Posted 13 years ago # -
I have reservations about sending 'unwanted' western bikes to 'the third world'.
But these people have been doing it for a while -
"
10 November - shipment Malawi. Triple celebration!!!
We have just finished loading our 9th container of the year and have cause for a triple celebration -Our first time sending bikes to Malawi
The bikes are going to a new partner
A record number of bikes loaded - 475
""
Current African Partners
Re~Cycle's trusted partners in Africa deliver the projects on the ground, refurbishing, distributing and maintaining the bikes. Partners vary in approach, including; offering credit, government subsidies, running workshops to teach cycle repair and maintenance skills and courses in safe riding. Re~Cycle is working to help them develop capacity, moving towards "The Ideal Partner".
"Posted 13 years ago # -
World Bicycle Relief delivering 50,000 bikes to Zambian schools
"For just $134, you can give the Power of Bicycles-empowering an individual, a family, a community and generations to come."
Posted 13 years ago # -
One of my spare time roles is as trustee of a local charity. One thing that matters to charities is the difference between unrestricted and restricted funds.
If you give money to Oxfam to buy a bicycle these are restricted funds and they are legally bound to buy a bicycle with it. Although obviously welcome, they aren't as welcome as unrestricted funds that Oxfam can spend on anything.
Ticking that little box lets you give unrestricted funds. They can use them to buy bicycles, medical kits, latrines, a new photocopier, biscuits for the staff canteen or anything else that takes their fancy. Much more useful and flexible.
Posted 13 years ago #
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