[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 119 (Tuesday, July 19, 2022)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E753]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




      INTRODUCTION OF THE BICYCLES FOR RURAL AFRICAN TRANSPORT ACT

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                          HON. EARL BLUMENAUER

                               of oregon

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, July 19, 2022

  Mr. BLUMENAUER. Madam Speaker, today I introduced the Bicycles for 
Rural African Transport Act. Transportation access in the developing 
world is limited. In sub-Saharan Africa, more than seventy percent of 
people rely on walking as their primary mode of transportation. For 
these individuals access to a bicycle is revolutionary.
  Bicycles can be impactful tools for effective foreign aid and 
international economic development.
  Low-cost, high-impact investments in bicycles will allow us to use 
existing foreign aid more effectively. Many developing-world rural 
populations suffer from time poverty, which limits opportunities to 
access education, healthcare, employment and job training 
opportunities, and markets. By reducing time poverty, bicycle access 
significantly improves school attendance for rural girls. In one trial, 
girls with bicycles were 19 percent less likely to drop out of school.
  In recent years, USAID has conducted a small rural mobility program 
to study the bicycle's development impacts. In Tanzania in 2019, USAID 
donated 2,160 bicycles to health care workers as part of AIDS treatment 
efforts, allowing the workers to reach more patients and reducing AIDS 
transmission in the area. In Malawi in 2020, USAID established a 
revolving loan fund to finance bicycles for workers on a sugar cane 
cooperative, reducing their commute times and increasing productivity.
  USAID's work on this program has clearly demonstrated the value of 
bicycles for rural transportation in developing nations. This 
legislation authorizes a permanent rural mobility program at USAID 
which will promote rural, sub-Saharan communities' access to services 
and opportunities through affordable, fit-for-purpose bicycles. This 
more systematic approach will allow USAID to maximize the potential 
impact of bicycle projects and ensure the United States continues 
utilizing this simple, revolutionary development tool.

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