A Discussion on Social Enterprise in Ghana

September 22, 2017

Bernice Dapaah, Founder and CEO, Ghana Bamboo Bike Initiative

From the African Bicycle Contribution Foundation:
A. Bruce Crawley, Chairman
Renée Chenault Fattah, Board Member
Patricia Marshall Harris, Executive Director

Entrepreneur Bernice Dapaah and leaders of the African Bicycle Contribution Foundation were hosted by SAIS Women Lead for a discussion on social enterprise and community development in Ghana.

Dapaah shared her experience in creating employment opportunities for women and youth through an innovative and sustainable bicycle manufacturing company. Since 2009, the Ghana Bamboo Bike Initiative has provided training to equip people to set up their own small-scale bicycle production centers in villages throughout rural Ghana. The spread of these bicycles helps reduce poverty by increasing local farmers' access to markets and allows them to sell more produce than they could otherwise transport.

Dapaah has nurtured the project from its origin as an idea she developed at the Clinton Global Initiative University. The project has been recognized with many awards, including Dapaah's selection as a 2014 Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum.

A. Bruce Crawley, Renée Chenault Fattah, and Patricia Marshall Harris of the Africa Bicycle Contribution Foundation discussed their work in generating funding to underwrite the distribution of bicycles to under-resourced youth and farmers in Ghana. The foundation makes a vital impact on living standards for rural Ghanaians, many of whom without bicycles would have to walk long distances to haul water, food, and produce by hand.