This summer I, along with 3 other lads, will be cycling the length of this small island of ours in aid of a fantastic project in Uganda. Starting from Lands End on 15th August and finishing in John O’Groats on 26th August, we will be punishing ourselves through is an epic ride of 1,100 miles in aid of this great cause, averaging 90 miles per day.

 

One of the lads riding with us (Ian King) last year gave up 6 months of his life to volunteer in Uganda, setting up a project on behalf of Mityana Community Foundation (MCF a UK registered charity) to improve health through better water sanitation.  Ian is increbily passionate about this project; their motto is “give a hand-up not a hand out” and the money we raise will do just that. The money recouped from the village will thbe used in another village and so on and so forth (that's the idea of course, got to make the project work in this first village first!).

 

All the money raised will go direct to this project, none is being spent on admin costs in the UK.  The head of the charity is taking a holiday so he can drive the support van for our team for 12 whole days, and the lads and I are paying in full for all our accommodation and costs whilst on the road.

 

So what is the Project:

 

•        Loan the village £6,000 to install facilities (60,000L-70,000L rainwater harvesting and 20-30 toilets)
•        Aiming to fund raise £10,000 so we can also employ a Ugandan to provide on-going support along with educational and training materials to ensure sustainable ownership
•        Villagers pay 3p for 20L of water, with a typical household using 60L to 80L per day (154 households)
•        The toilets are free to use
•        Urine is collected and sold as fertilizer at £1.66 per 20L
•        Four to eight villagers are employed by the village to run and maintain the facilities (probably HIV/AIDS sufferers as requested by the village
•        The money recouped from the village will then be used in another village and so on and so forth (that's the idea of course, got to make the project work in this first village first!).

 

Cycling the length of this country is a daunting prospect, so please sponsor my legs in aid of this great project.

 

Thankingyouall in advance for your support, you wonderful people you!

 

Ged