Sustainable transport solutions for Senegal - Velo Solair
Sustainable transport solutions for Senegal
With the support of the Bavarian State Chancellery, a project is underway in Senegal that aims to provide flexible and sustainable transport solutions for young entrepreneurs: Electronic cargo bicycles can be used for transporting goods or as a mobile workshop. The "Velo Solaire" workshop, where the parts from Germany are assembled, also offers jobs and training opportunities.
Competences:
Vocational orientation, vocational training, business start-up
Target Group:
Young people, young entrepreneurs, unemployed
Country:
Senegal
Contact
Bildungswerk der Bayerischen Wirtschaft (bbw) gGmbH
International department
From unemployment to the workshop – "Velo Solaire" has already given a small team of Senegalese young people a chance to work and therefore a better life. And this opportunity should be given to many more people in the Thies region and beyond. Initially, it is planned to create five internships in production in order to impart practical skills to young welders after their training.
The aim is for entrepreneurs to use the bikes to improve their income
The local Chamber of Crafts and the company Anywhere.berlin from Germany are involved in the project, amongst others. The latter supplies the bicycle parts and makes the expertise available through training workshops within the workshop. Manuals and documentation are also produced there to facilitate the expansion of the project into other African countries. Repair videos are also planned for the local bike mechanics. The emphasis is on maximum practical relevance, taking into account the use of the local language.
The first bicycle is out and about for promotional purposes in order to make the target group – which for the most part cannot read and which is difficult to reach through advertising campaigns, for example via social media – aware of the project and its possibilities. The focus of the project is on the training of young people: The aim is for 40 to 50 entrepreneurs to use the cargo bikes to improve their income.
Expansion to other countries is planned
Potential users receive training in the handling of the cargo bikes in short cycling skill tests. They learn how to steer and brake with a loaded cargo bike so that they can navigate through traffic as safely as possible. A database of trained bicycle mechanics is being developed as is a digital platform for bringing business ideas to "Velo Solaire". The expansion to other countries could be implemented as follow-up projects, as could the development of battery charging structures in rural regions.
News
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Promotion of sustainable small-scale entrepreneurship and development of climate-neutral small-scale logistics
Project implementation by:
