We were very excited to be invited to join in on a Qhubeka Distribution Day Ceremony, which took place in Alexandra today.
The City of Jo’burg and Qhubeka have been working together to develop a bicycle distribution program to help children travel to school faster and more safely, thereby boosting their attendance through increased mobility. Alexandra was identified as an area for bicycle distribution by the City of Joburg due to the cycling corridor that is being constructed between Alex and Sandton.
The Ceremony included speeches from relevant parties that have helped make the bicycle distribution possible in Alexandra including the corporate donors Fluor, Tarsus and AutoTrader. What really stood out from the speeches is that in order for this bicycle program to be sustainable there is a need for the entire community to be part of the process from the children, their parents, the school through to the Johannesburg Metro Police Department (to make sure the roads are safe for the children to ride to school) as well as the SA Police Service.
Kwabhekilanga Secondary School was chosen to receive the bicycles today based on its position as the highest-performing school in Alexandra in terms of Matric pass rate in both 2014 and 2015, and because the majority of schoolchildren currently walk to school. A total of 50 children were present at the Ceremony to receive the bicycles. In total, 350 bicycles will be allocated to school learners (280 bicycles) and adults (70 bicycles) in Alexandra.
It was really great to see what a difference all donations to the Qhubeka non-profit organisation is making in communities such as Alexandra. If you would like to make a donation to Qhubeka, please click here for more details.
For further information about the Alexandra Bicycle Distribution Program, please click here.
