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MECHANICS
The
Mechanics for Serenje and Chibobo project
commenced in 2008 following a visit to Chibobo by a group from St.
Mary's Anglican Church, Sunbury, Australia. Some of the team members
noticed how there was a need to assist with skills in the maintenance
of the community's infrastructure, including the training of locals in
this field. The following article outlines some of the vision for the
project. Click on the links at the bottom to find out more about the
Mechanics for Serenje & Chibobo project.
Mechanics
for Serenje
& Chibobo Vision statement
to Serenje council
Zambia
is modernizing
rapidly
with more people owning motor vehicles and appliances.The
understanding of the need to maintain
this equipment, or the skill to carry out even the most basic forms of
maintenance, is not well developed. Mechanics for Serenje and
Chibobo has a vision to meet the need for vehicle maintenance in the
district,
while generating revenue to assist the Chibobo and Serenje orphanages
become
self-sustaining.
It is also part of Zambian
life that people walk long distances to get to school, work and the
shops. Goods purchased must then be carried back to
the home, which can be a considerable burden, particularly for the
women and children.The
vision encompasses several
stages, to progressively develop the skills, capabilities and capital
to
establish a high standard workshop facility in Serenje.
The
first
stage is to provide
training to capable young people, initially in motor mechanics.There
are opportunities to extend this
training over time to include auto electrics, electrical wiring,
plumbing and
other essential skills that are needed to develop and maintain
facilities, as
electricity and running water become more widely available.
This
part of
the vision is
already being implemented. A young man
from Chibobo is training as a motor mechanic at Mechanics for Africa in
Ndola. He has now completed the first 6 months of the two year course and is making good progress. The
cost of the course fees, accommodation,
meals and travel will amount to ZMK 11,000,000 and is being shared
equally bythe Chibobo and Serenje orphanages. The
young man has signed a contract to work for 6 years for the orphanages. If
he chooses not to complete the contract,
he is required to reimburse the costs of the course on a pro-rata basis.
The second
stage provides
bicycles to the community to make travel easier and less time consuming. Two
organizations, Bicycles for Humanity and
Bicycle Empowerment Network are already providing programs to supply
bicycles
to Namibia and other parts of Africa.The
concept
is to collect bicycles from developed countries and ship
them in sea containers to the destination.On
arrival,
the container becomes a workshop and local people are
trained to perform the ongoing maintenance program needed for the
bicycles. It
is planned to link up with these
organizations to implement a similar, first at Chibobo and later at
Serenje, if
the program is successful.Allocation of
the initial shipment of bicycles would be to the carers/guardians at
the orphanages, then to others on the basis of making a contribution to the
community and being trained in maintenance as a condition for receiving
the bicycle. The first shipment of bicycles
will be delivered as part of Stage 3. The third stage of the
project is to set up a small vehicle workshop in Chibobo. The
nucleus of the workshop will be a 40 ft.
shipping container. The container would
be set up in Melbourne with extra doors, electrical wiring and benches. It
will be used to deliver the air
compressor, generator, servicing equipment and the initial shipment of
bicycles. On arrival at Chibobo, the container would be fitted with a roof along one wall and become the
basis for the bicycle and vehicle workshop with secure equipment storage. The
mechanic in training would initially
work out of this workshop. The
fourth stage is the
construction and operation of a modern, well equipped, commercial work
shop in
Serenje, using the equipment shipped to Chibobo in Stage 3. The
feasibility, legal and commercial
requirements to staff and operate this work shop will be developed over
time.
This stage commenced with a meeting between the team and
representatives of the
Chibobo and Serenje orphanages on 17th July 2009.
To find out
more:
Mechanics article
Chibobo mechanics reports
Mechanics for Serenje & Chibobo Vision
Mechanics for Serenje Verstry Report 16th Feb 09
MFC Contribution form
MFC Newsletter 2
MFC Newsletter 1
MFS Vestry Report 20 April 2009
VACC Article
WMMechanics for Chibobo Report
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