Riders for Health is a
non-governmental organization
A non-governmental organization (NGO) or non-governmental organisation (see spelling differences) is an organization that generally is formed independent from government. They are typically nonprofit entities, and many of them are active in h ...
(NGO) that specialises in supplying, managing and maintaining vehicles for health-focused organisations in African countries. Motorcycles are well-suited for delivering health care in Africa, where roads are in poor condition or simply non-existent and budgets are tight.
Riders transport systems are designed specifically for health care delivery in Africa ensuring health workers are trained to ride or drive the correct vehicle and that parts and fuel are always available. Riders work with healthcare partners such as national governments as well NGOs, from the initial planning and budgeting of programmes to procurement of vehicles and training of riders/drivers to the retirement and replacement of vehicles.
History
Riders for Health was founded by Barry and Andrea Coleman, a British husband-and-wife team, and motorcycle racer
Randy Mamola
Randy Mamola (born November 10, 1959) is an American former professional motorcycle racer and television sports presenter. He competed in Grand Prix motorcycle racing between and . A 13-time Premier Class race winner, Mamola was one of the mo ...
. Barry worked as a
correspondent
A correspondent or on-the-scene reporter is usually a journalist or commentator for a magazine, or an agent who contributes reports to a newspaper, or radio or television news, or another type of company, from a remote, often distant, locati ...
and feature writer for ''
The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'' newspaper in Britain. Andrea was a professional motorcycle racer for five years. Randy Mamola was a US motorcycle racer, now an official FIM Grand Prix Legend.
The team went to Africa with Save the Children where they saw abandoned motorbikes that had been donated by aid organisations but had not been cared for or maintained. In 1986, with the help of Save the Children, local governments and money raised at fundraisers in England, they set up pilot programs in
Uganda
}), is a landlocked country in East Africa
East Africa, Eastern Africa, or East of Africa, is the eastern subregion of the African continent. In the United Nations Statistics Division scheme of geographic regions, 10-11-(16*) territor ...
and
Gambia
The Gambia,, ff, Gammbi, ar, غامبيا officially the Republic of The Gambia, is a country in West Africa. It is the smallest country within mainland AfricaHoare, Ben. (2002) ''The Kingfisher A-Z Encyclopedia'', Kingfisher Publicatio ...
, and helped acquire motorcycles, train riders and technicians and develop a systematic maintenance programme.
They built a fleet of 47 bikes in Lesotho that delivered health-care services from 1991 to 1996 without a breakdown. At the end of that period, Riders for Health expanded into Ghana, Zimbabwe and Nigeria. They have since diversified its fleet to include
refrigerated trucks,
minivans
Minivan (sometimes called simply as van) is a North American car classification for vehicles designed to transport passengers in the rear seating row(s), with reconfigurable seats in two or three rows. The equivalent classification in Europe is ...
and
ambulance
An ambulance is a medically equipped vehicle which transports patients to treatment facilities, such as hospitals. Typically, out-of-hospital medical care is provided to the patient during the transport.
Ambulances are used to respond to medi ...
s and introduced a
motorcycle ambulance
Motorcycle ambulances are a type of emergency vehicle which either carries a solo paramedic or first responder to a patient; or is used with a trailer or sidecar for transporting patients. Because of its size and performance, a motorcycle ambula ...
fitted with a
sidecar
A sidecar is a one-wheeled device attached to the side of a motorcycle, scooter, or bicycle, making the whole a three-wheeled vehicle. A motorcycle with a sidecar is sometimes called a ''combination'', an ''outfit'', a ''rig'' or a ''hack''.
...
called the Uhuru that can be used as a mini-ambulance and double as a
water pump
A pump is a device that moves fluids (liquids or gases), or sometimes slurries, by mechanical action, typically converted from electrical energy into hydraulic energy. Pumps can be classified into three major groups according to the method they u ...
when the bike is stationary.
Governments and aid organisations rely on Riders to ensure care reaches communities, using Riders services for the transport of samples and test results to even the most remote communities as well as community healthcare, the delivery of information and preventative measures, the running of antenatal and immunisation clinics and more.
In May 2016 the organisation announced the closure of its UK office.
Riders for Health closes down UK operations
''Motorcycle News
''MCN'' or ''Motor Cycle News'' is a UK weekly motorcycling newspaper published by Bauer Consumer Media, based in Peterborough, United Kingdom. It claims to be "the world’s biggest weekly motorcycle newspaper".
The title was founded in la ...
'', 23 May 2016. Retrieved 27 December 2020 Riders for Health continues to run, managed by African staff in the countries where it operates. Founders Andrea Coleman and Randy Mamola have set up a separate fundraising and support organisation Two Wheels for Life that operates out of the UK.
References
Time - Motorcycle Riders
External links
Social Innovation Conversations, June 5, 2008
Official website
Riders for Health official channel at YouTube
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Health charities in the United Kingdom
Motorcyclists organizations
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