DEPDC, a non-profit community based NGO working in Thailand on the prevention side of the trafficking of women and children into the sex industry or other exploitative child labour situations, is currently fundraising to provide bicycles as a means of transport to the many children attending it's schools in rural Northern Thailand.
Since DEPDC/GMS offers free education, many children from poor families come from far away. Some of the younger students at the Half Day School walk at least one hour to get to school in the morning. Therefore, they decided to raise funds to buy bicycles for those children to enable them to get to school easier and faster and in a state in which they will be better able to learn.
The charity currently has 10 children in need of a bicycle, some of them as young as 6 years old. They get up early each morning and walk alone, sometimes on an empty stomach, getting their only meal of the day at DEPDC/GMS. After school, they then walk back home after school in the stifling heat. Riding a bicycle will make their daily commute much more convenient and less tiring.
Along with the bicycles, the children will also receive a lock chain, helmet, basket, safety lights and, when needed, DEPDC/GMS will pay for repairs – all for a total of US$80 per bicycle. The goal to raise US$1000 to buy 10 bicycles with the possibility of buying 2 more during the school year, if needed.
A simple donation will make a significant difference in the daily life of a child. Please click here for the Half Day School Bicycle Fundraising Project!