Pedal – Driven Development: How Qhubeka Bicycle Programmes, Are Changing Lives

According to the World Bank Local Economic Development is defined as: “Building up the economic capacity of a local area to improve its economic future and quality of life for all. It is a process by which public, businesses and nongovernmental sector partners work collectively to create better conditions for economic growth and employment generation.” A South African  NGO, Qhubeka truly personifies this understanding of LED, fully capturing the practical value of simple methodologies which successfully generate significant economic and social benefits for all.

Qhubeka is a South African non-profit organization, founded in 2005, which economically empowers local communities through its provision of bicycles. By connecting people to schools, clinics, jobs and exclusive opportunities, Qhubeka, a Nguni word meaning “to progress or move forward”, uses bicycles to change lives. Qhubeka is  expanding throughout most of South Africa, targeting each and every province, implementing programmes ranging from Cape Town in the Western Cape, along the coast to Port Elizabeth in the Eastern Cape, all the way up to  communities in Gauteng, Mpumalanga, North West, Kwa-Zula Natal and Limpopo. According to Qhubeka’s  national programmes manager, Jan Rossouw, Qhubeka’s aim is to “ mobilize people on bicycles,” while simultaneously implementing various programmes and projects, creating substantial economic, safety and educational benefits for struggling communities. Based on the following analysis and insights, in alignment with their current status and through further growth, the future potential impact of Qhubeka’s operations and development initiatives, are enormous.

QHUBEKA PROGRAMMES:

Qhubeka firmly believes that, “good development happens when a community is given a hand – up, not a hand out.” All of the organization’s programmes are based upon a learn – to – earn or work – to – earn programmes, such as the following:

Scholar Mobility Programmes:

The “Scholar Mobility Programme” (SMP)  is designed to empower schools with a mechanism to improve scholar engagement and to drive specific strategic objectives of the school to continuously improve its ability and quality as a learning institution. It further enable scholars access to structured learning institutions and other school and related activities by using bicycles to overcome any mobility constraints. The objective is to ultimately have improved educational outcomes and higher pass rates by increased school attendance, punctuality to school and participation in other school and educational activities.

Linked closely with the Scholar Mobility Programme is Qhubeka’s initiatives to create a safer environment for learners to facilitate improved education outcomes. This is achieved by empowering appointed School Security Personnel and active Community Policing Forum (CPF) members to use bicycles to improve scholar and school safety and security by patrolling and monitoring of school premises, assisting and monitoring school access points, and assisting and escorting learners to school where possible. An added benefit is the general improvement of CPF mobility and visibility around the communities in which the schools are located.

Security Programmes:

Qhubeka is also actively establishing programmes and distributing  bicycles in aim of increasing local security which is a particularly important aspect given South Africa’s extremely high crime rates. A study conducted in India at the University of Delhi using data ranging from 1991 to 2011 found that higher crime rates lead to a lower GDP per capita. In one such example, Qhubeka has recently worked with the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality  to launch a programme in Port Elizabeth  which bicycles were distributed  and used to train and employ 100 local community members between the age of 18 and 35 to provide sustainable safety and security related services. In partnership with Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality (NMBM) and Volkswagen South Africa (VWSA), they have used the city’s hosting of the Ironman World Championship to  create opportunities for unemployed young adults to earn a decent monthly living wage. Under the programme  employment for 50  “peace officers”, 30 “beach officers” and 20 “tourisim ambassadors” were created, enabling them to, “play a vital role in the sustainable safety and security apparatus of the municipality before, during and after  the event.” According to Qhubeka executive director Tsatsi Phaweni, “the long term hope is to create a legacy programme that can be incorporated into existing neighborhood watches, thus creating a sense of security in communities and the general public.” An effective side note on this particular project is that it aligns with the World Bank’s 2030 Vision and their new “Cascade” approach. A methodology involving development investment strategy which prioritizes public – private partnerships in aim of, ““crowding in” the private sector and “creating markets””.

Healthcare Worker Programmes:

Qhubeka provides bicycles to health workers allowing them to travel further distances to treat patients and carry more medical supplies, enabling communities to receive wider access to healthcare and clinics. This is in turn allows for a healthier individuals and overall population. A study by economists at the Harvard school of Public health in 2004 found that, “health has a positive and statistically significant effect on economic growth.” While another study published in the journal of Applied Economics states that, “health care expenditure must have positive effects on labour productivity, as higher curative and preventive health care expenditures improve labour participation in production activity.” Despite Qhubeka’s bikes not being directly classified as health expenditure, they are directly related to and have vital impact on health services and thus contribute to health expenditure. Furthermore, in 2007 from economist Jocelyn Finlay, also from the Harvard school of public health, mentions the incentive effect, which borne out of theoretical literature, states, “individuals who are healthier and have a greater life expectancy will have the incentive to invest in education as the time horizon over which returns can be earned is extended. Education is the driver of economic growth, and thus health plays an indirect role.” Therefore, it is evident that numerous studies have been conducted and confirm that increased healthcare, access to health services and health expenditure have a significantly positive effect on economic growth, and Qhubeka is playing their part.

Adult Programmes:

Within the adult programmes Qhubeka has various work to earn programmes including the  Tree – prenuer and the Waste – preneur. In return for collecting waste and planting trees, individuals can receive bicycles. A Tree – prenuer is required to plant at least 200 trees and nurture them to the height of 30cm, while a Waste – prenuer can trade 4,000 PET litre bottles or 200kg of sorted waste for a bicycle. Environmental sustainability is under particular threat in many South African rural areas on account of large mining operations which destroy large proportions of natural habitats, thus this type of programming is essential in restoring these territories. Research presented at 5th Ministerial Conference on Environment and Development in Asia, and the Pacific in Seoul, Korea by the three Economic, Environmental and Development experts in Asia found strong relationships between environmental sustainability and economic growth. Their studies showed that economic growth degrades environmental sustainability in most countries, and therefore it is important to ensure that environmental sustainability is in alignment with economic growth, as it allows for an all rounded form of development for local communities. In addition to these programmes, Qhubeka also runs a Bicycle Field Mechanic Program in alignment with  its various programmes which  select members of communities to train in bicycle mechanic skills to ultimately establish a Bicycle repair shop and provides them with technical manuals,  small business skills training courses and bicycle repair tools. This is another vital form of economic development as businesses and employment opportunities assist in creating micro – enterprises which ultimately inject money into local economies, while allowing local citizens to increase their incomes and lift their standard of living.

IMPACT EVALUATION:

As follows is an analysis highlighting key data points truly conveying the groundbreaking impact which Qhubeka is having:

·          Scholar Mobility Programme:

o   Was originally launched in 2009, and in December 2012 and impact study was conducted on 600 households and 300 students assessing the programme outcomes over the previous years. The introduction of Qhubeka seemed to have significant impact as follows:

o   School Attendance:

§  Before bicycle introduction, 21% of parents reported the primary reason for student’s absence to school being DISTANCE, afterwards, this number fell to 0%

§  On average attendance for girls improved by 28% while attendance for boys improved by 25%.

o   Academic performance

§  Amongst the bicycle receivers between boys of girls, as measured by end of term average scores, there was an incredible 22 percentage point and 59% improvement in student results. In three years this is truly outstanding.

o   Travel time

§  Before the bicycle programme was implemented 33% of students travelled to school in one hour or less, 3 years later 89% of students travelled in an hour or less.

o   Quality of life

§  After being surveyed on wellbeing, 73% of students said their lives were significantly improved while 17% reported noticeable change.

o   Safety

§  After bicycles, 69% of students reported feeling safe when going to and from school as most usually face dangers including wild animals, night walks and crime.

Qhubeka tells the story of Percy, “Percy lives in a village in rural Limpopo where there is no high school. He received a bicycle in 2014, when he was in grade 9, through a Qhubeka programme run by World Vision, to help him ride the 5km to the high school in a neighboring town. In January 2018, Percy got his Matric (12^th grade) results – he was one of the four top-performing students in the Limpopo province. He is currently studying to become a medical doctor at the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg.” The economic and social benefits this not only brings to Percy and his family but to the people within his community. He now will be able to get a tertiary education, get a job as a doctor, and increase the standard of living for his family, while injecting money into his local community, and providing local healthcare.

In discussion with national programmes manger Jan Rossouw, he explained the impact on waste pickers. While still tracking the  full impact, they reported that the average waste pickers in Soweto earns about US$100 – US$150 per month. On any given day they may spend 10 hours of their day collecting rubbish, and then sorting through it the following day. Impact reports  indicates that with bicycles waste – preneurs can collect the same amount of rubbish in 5 hours versus the 10 they would take on foot. The ripple impact of this could be astronomical, cutting their collect time in half they could essentially earn nearly double what they normally earn per month, allowing them not only to increase their standard of living and inject more money into their local economy but aid them in escaping poverty.

One of the most incredible stories related to Qhubeka bicycles is that of a father rand son in the midst of tragedy. In 2017, Knysna, South Africa experienced one of the country’s worst bushfires in its history in which a rampant fire, fueled by 90km/hour winds, stretching across 300km, burnt for nearly two weeks. Over a 1000 homes were destroyed, 300 structures were damaged, more than 10,000 people displaced and there was over US$300million in overall damages. Amongst the heartbreak and disaster came a glimpse of hope driven by opportunity. According to national programmes  manager Jan Rossouw, a father and son from a local township in the surrounding Knysna area has been  selling sandwiches to the business and workers in the central business area.  Together they would make sandwiches at their home and walk from the township to the central business district , sell their sandwiches and then walk back to make more. The two became well – known among the businesses  and one day someone pointed out the difference a bicycle could make. Qhubeka provided the father and son with bicycles, and it was like a spark to flame. The duo continued their business and within six months they hired a third worker and within a year the two had bought a car to expand their operations. This extraordinary feat was all made possible by the introduction, of a bicycle. Developing from a situation in where the father and son had to walk many kilometers commuting from a township, the provision of a bicycle allowed them to excel exponentially and purchase a motor vehicle which takes substantial financial capabilities. As best said by Singapore’s former prime minister Lee Kuan Yew, “All people want is an opportunity to better themselves, and we gave them that opportunity.”

In the 2016 and 2017 alone, Qhubeka distributed 14,300 bikes which included over 8,000 to students and 5,000 to work to earn programmes providing economic opportunity. What does this mean for Qhubeka and their economic development impact?  Well, in 2018 they will be aiming to increase distribution to 12,000 – 15,000 bikes and moving forward they have set their goals at 20,000 annually by the end of 2019 and 100,000 per year by 2030. If they are having the impact now, on people like Percy and fathers and sons, there must be many more just like them in the 12,000 – 15,000 bicycles Qhubeka will be distributing by the end of this year, never mind the 100,000 bicycles they are aiming to  to distribute per year by 2030, and the 83,000 bicycles distributed since 2005. Another objective of Qhubeka is to partner with reputable institutions to establish advanced monitoring and evaluation systems which could through the introduction of continual quantifiable outcomes, enable the visualization of their substantial economic impact. Regardless, Qhubeka’s scholar mobility programmes, work to earn programmes, government and business partnerships and various methodologies has allowed their implementation of local economic development to be truly remarkable. As they continue operate, implement and grow moving forward, they could spark a global movement in which the world’s eyes are opened to how bicycles, truly can change lives.

Indigenous Australian Business Foresees Development Triumph

Australia is a well – developed country with a strong economy, but within it exists a highly struggling native population. Indigenous Australians, after years of mistreatment and discrimination, have been severely struggling economically. The Australian 2016 census showed that Indigenous Australians were experiencing an unemployment rate of 18.4% which was approximately three times the unemployment rate of Non – Indigenous Australians at 5.8%. This is extraordinarily high. When analyzing this statistic within a global context, if the Indigenous Australian employment rate were to be ranked amongst nationalities worldwide from highest to lowest based on recent statistic reports, Indigenous Australia would lie at 18^th, on par with Jordan and in between Armenia (18%) and Nigeria(18.80%). Even Syria, despite the tragedy and wars it has endeared over recent years reported a lower unemployment rate at 15.10%. (Trading Economics, 2018) Other countries below Indigenous Australia would also include Iraq and Haiti. It may be hard to collect current and accurate data from these regions, but this is still cause for great concern amongst Australia and its Indigenous population. Furthermore, just over half of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders participate in the workforce with a labor participation rate of 57.1% versus the non – Indigenous labor participation, which stands at over three – quarters of the population, at 77%. (Statistics, 2018)

            Over the past three years the Australian government has decided to take action, implementing four different policies aimed at promoting and growing the Indigenous Business Sector by creating job opportunities, stimulating economic growth and supporting Indigenous communities. These development policies are as follows:

1. In July 2015 the Australian government enacted the Indigenous Procurement Policy (IPP). The purpose of the IPP was, “to leverage the Commonwealth’s annual multi-billion procurement spend to drive demand for Indigenous goods and services, stimulate Indigenous economic development and grow the Indigenous business sector” (Government, INDIGENOUS PROCUREMENT POLICY, 2018). The policy was released in three main parts including:

·         “A 3% target of all government contracts that needed to be awarded to Indigenous businesses by 2020;

·         A mandatory set-aside for remote contracts and contracts valued between $80,000 - $200,000;

·         Minimum Indigenous participation requirements in contracts valued at or above $7.5m in certain industries.” (Government, INDIGENOUS PROCUREMENT POLICY, 2018)

2. The Indigenous Entrepreneurs Package (IEP) was announced in 2016 as part of the 2016 election commitment. The IEP will experience one of its first actions implemented in 2018 with the set opening of the Barayamal Centre for Entrepreneurship (BEC), which will commence operations in July 2018 (it will be the first centre for Indigenous Entrepreneurs in Australia). The aim of the Indigenous Entrepreneurs Package was to build upon the success of the IPP by introducing $115million Fund aimed at, “empowering Indigenous Australians – through job creation, financial security for families and communities, and contributing to the growth of local economies and the Australian economy broadly.” The package is divided into three components as follows:

• “a commitment to develop the first Indigenous Business Sector Strategy to provide Indigenous businesses with the support, finances and networks they need for their businesses to thrive;

• a commitment to refocus Indigenous Business Australia’s business support program on early stage entrepreneurs across Australia; and

• a $90 million Indigenous Entrepreneurs Fund.” (Government, GROWING THE INDIGENOUS BUSINESS SECTOR, 2018)

3. Towards the end of 2016 the Australian government introduced the Indigenous Grants Policy (IGP) which has a twofold purpose:

·         “Increase the involvement of Indigenous people in the design and delivery of programs that affect them; and

·         Improve on‑the‑ground service delivery for Indigenous Australians.” (Governemnt, 2018)

The IGP is attempting to reform the method in which grant money is provided to Indigenous Australians such as to highly improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the process, thus improving outcomes for Aboriginals and Torres Strait Islander communities and businesses. The IGP would be applied to mainly Grants to a Third Party in which Indigenous Australians are the main beneficiaries. One example, of this may be a grant given to a remote micro-finance institution whose majority clients are Indigenous Australians, thus providing more resources and support for their businesses and communities.

4. On the 12^th of February 2018 the government announced the establishment of the Indigenous Business Sector Strategy (IBSS). According to the Department of the Prime Minister and the Cabinet, “It is the first time ever the Commonwealth is investing in a comprehensive package of support for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people to take their rightful place in the Australian economy.” This strategy builds upon the 2016 Indigenous Entrepreneurs Package and will specifically include:

·         “The establishment of Indigenous Business Hubs anchored to major cities – a one-stop-shop for business advice and support – starting in Western Sydney in partnership with the New South Wales Aboriginal Land Council.

·         A $27 million Indigenous Entrepreneurs Capital Scheme to unlock a range of finance and capital products for Indigenous businesses who are transitioning to mainstream banking.

·         Doubling the microfinance footprint across Australia to support more entrepreneurial activity and economic development especially among young people and women, and in regional and remote locations.  

·         Specific support for Indigenous businesses that wish to take advantage of our record investment in major infrastructure projects.” (Government, A new roadmap for growth of the Indigenous business sector, 2018)

The Indigenous Business Strategy will also specifically aim at increasing the number of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women and youth into the business sector.

Evaluation:

Unfortunately, due to the recent introduction of these policies the only one that can be fully examined is the IPP, the other three policies have not had effective time after implementation to be fully analyzed. Therefore, the following discussion involves the evaluation of the IPP, as the IEP will only see its first centre open next month, while the IGP has been in operation for little over a year and the IBSS for approximately five months.

The IPP has brought great success resulting in major growth amongst Indigenous Businesses. Some of the outcomes are list below:

·        “In the first two years since the IPP began, from 1 July 2015 to 30 June 2017, 4,880 contracts were awarded to 956 Indigenous-owned businesses with a total value of $594 million.

·        This cumulative figure includes $24 million in contracts awarded to Indigenous businesses in 2015–16 that was not reported until 2017;

·        Contracts were awarded across all industry sectors and in all states and territories.” (Government, INDIGENOUS PROCUREMENT POLICY, 2018)

According to the minister of Indigenous Affairs Senator Nigel Scullion that, “Within the first two years of the IPP, we have already exceeded the 2020 target of awarding 3 per cent of all government contracts to Indigenous businesses annually – targets which were once thought impossible.” He also said that, “Australia’s Indigenous business sector has long been overlooked by governments. Only four years ago Indigenous businesses were awarded just $6.2 million in Australian Government contracts. Today I am pleased to announce that in the two years since this program commenced, 956 Indigenous businesses have won over $594 million in government contracts.” This equates to 9580% increase in contract value for Indigenous Businesses over four years. Thus, the IPP seems to be have been extremely successful in boosting the Australian Indigenous Business Sector, but despite this incredible growth, there are a few concerns from experts. (Government, Coalition's Indigenous Procurement Policy $594 million success story, 2017)

Jo Barraket, director for the Centre for Social impact at Swinburne University said that, “It’s terrific to have governments in Australia, NSW now being one of them, saying they’re going to commit to doing that work,” but, “what we know about procurement is that having the policy isn’t enough. Policy commitments like these require implementation and that often involves changes to systems and culture within government agencies. That’s what is needed; its policy plus implementation.” Despite recognizing and supporting the IPP and its outcomes, director Barraket warns of the future. She says that along with the IPP, continued policy implementation must be maintained, which will hopefully be shown in the other policies. She also stresses the importance of monitoring the policy outcomes and implementation processes such as to ensure the furthered success and growth of the Indigenous business sector. (O'Keeffe, 2018) Finally, another study by the Centre of Independent Studies warns of the issues associated with measuring targets by contract number instead of monetary value. The report states that, “(This) provides an avenue for departments to easily tick off ­targets and creates inconsistency in the measurement of overall figures by enabling figures to be boosted by a large number of small contracts.” Thus, such an element will be a danger in analyzing the estimated effect of the IPP. Despite this, the IPP has shown to be a great success within the Australian economy and the Indigenous Business Sector.

Overall, it might be to early to conclude on the long run effect or success of these development policies, but their implementation is in the aim of a making a difference, and their short run success has proved to be far beyond expectation. The unemployment rate and labor participation rates of Indigenous Australia will also be firmly acted upon and in accordance with effective policies hopefully lead to increases in employment and participation by the next census in 2021. These and future policies will hopefully, as best stated by KPMG expert Bernard Salt, create, “Opportunities for the indigenous community and indeed for all Australians to contribute, to pond, to participate in the creation of a stronger, smarter and more socially cohesive Australian nation.” (CAISLEY, 2018)

References:

CAISLEY, O. (2018, March 27). Aboriginal businesses are growing across the nation. Retrieved from The Australian : https://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/nation/aboriginal-businesses-are-growing-across-the-nation/news-story/ff84615502d4c9568c4202aa138ada2b

Governemnt, A. (2018). OVERVIEW OF THE INDIGENOUS GRANTS POLICY. Retrieved from https://www.pmc.gov.au/indigenous-affairs/economic-development/overview-indigenous-grants-policy

Government, A. (2017, September 29). Coalition's Indigenous Procurement Policy $594 million success story. Retrieved from https://ministers.pmc.gov.au/scullion/2017/coalitions-indigenous-procurement-policy-594-million-success-story

Government, A. (2018). A new roadmap for growth of the Indigenous business sector. Retrieved from https://ministers.pmc.gov.au/scullion/2018/new-roadmap-growth-indigenous-business-sector

Government, A. (2018). GROWING THE INDIGENOUS BUSINESS SECTOR. Retrieved from https://closingthegap.pmc.gov.au/economic-development

Government, A. (2018). INDIGENOUS PROCUREMENT POLICY. Retrieved from https://www.pmc.gov.au/indigenous-affairs/economic-development/indigenous-procurement-policy-ipp

O'Keeffe, D. (2018, May 25). NSW Government boosts Aboriginal procurement. Retrieved from Government News: https://www.governmentnews.com.au/2018/05/nsw-government-boosts-aboriginal-procurement/

Statistics, A. B. (2018). Census of Population and Housing: Characteristics of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians, 2016 . Retrieved from http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/Latestproducts/2076.0Main%20Features512016?opendocument&tabname=Summary&prodno=2076.0&issue=2016&num=&view=

Trading Economics. (2018). Unemployment Rate. Retrieved from https://tradingeconomics.com/country-list/unemployment-rate