About Us Our Story

Mission:

a.ker.fa exists to change lives by supporting bicycle enterprises with appropriate technologies, consultancy and capital until sustainability is achieved.

Vision:

a.ker.fa aims to support 10 bicycle enterprises in their pursuit of sustainability, and to educate a generation of sponsors and followers about the power of changing lives in Africa through social businesses.

Values:

We believe that lasting change in developing communities comes through the empowerment of individuals by offering a hand-up, not a hand-out. We seek to accomplish this by providing job opportunities, training, education and dependable transportation resources.

We believe we are blessed to be a blessing, rooted and committed to sharing Christ’s ultimate message of love with those we serve.

• EMPOWER • EMPLOY • EDUCATE • LOVE •

History:

In 2004, Vaughn Spethmann and Dustin McBride traveled with a team of fellow college students on a missions trip to Zambia. The people of Zambia quickly stole their hearts and opened their eyes to the difficult realities of poverty. Most of the population in Zambia suffers from the country’s 50-80% unemployment status, while those fortunate enough to be employed are earning approximately $2 US a day.

During the team’s last day in Zambia, Vaughn accompanied a newfound friend, Benjamin, on a bicycle ride. It was difficult for Vaughn to ignore the state of the bicycles around them. They had cracked frames, bent rims and seat posts, missing spokes and were covered in rust. Vaughn asked Benjamin how much his bike had cost, to which he replied, “Used, it was $200 US.”

Upon Vaughn and Dustin’s return to the States, they were unable to forget the plight of the people they had met in Zambia and wrestled with how to reconcile their mission’s hearts with their business minds. With over a billion people worldwide lacking adequate access to transportation and most living in rural areas (like much of Zambia) cut off from markets, clinics and schools, the solution became more and more obvious: bicycles.

Bicycles would provide reliable transportation for people to get to work on time, enhance businesses, ensure medical workers could see patients and teachers and students could get to school. Setting up a bicycle company would also mean that employment opportunity, training and discipleship could happen.

The next problem: technical expertise. Vaughn and Dustin crossed paths with Daryl Funk, a bicycle engineer and all-around “bike guru” from Denver, Colorado. Alongside Vaughn and Dustin, Daryl traveled back to Zambia in 2007 to live in the community of Kampampa and establish a new bicycle company called Zambikes. The first container of 300 gorgeous red and blue bicycles was received that fall and assembled under the shade of a canopy attached to the side of the container.

In 2008, after spending their first year selling bikes and investing in the surrounding communities, Zambikes was able to purchase land in Kampampa, through the support of Akerfa, and began to construct an Assembly Facility under the direction of Jeffrey Robertson from San Diego, CA.

By God’s grace and the unwavering drive to persevere in the midst of difficulty, Zambikes experienced exponential growth in its pursuit of sustainability. They gained credibility with Zambian heads of State, local and international press (including NPR and BBC) and the support of numerous nonprofits and NGOs (including World Vision, Catholic Relief Services, Charity: Water and more). By the beginning of 2010, a Caretaker’s home and Community Center were completed on the Zambikes land, 2,500 bikes and 900 trailers had been distributed and new products had been developed. The Zambulance (bicycle ambulance trailer), Zamcart (cargo trailer) and new bamboo bicycles have set a new standard for solutions to transportation demands within Zambia and throughout the developing world.

But it’s about more than a bike... Zambikes has been able to employ and mentor nearly 40 Zambikes team members, training them in management, bike assembly, fabrication and construction. Thousands of lives have then been impacted and saved through the use of the products they created. With the distribution of 750 ambulance trailers by the end of 2009, more than 50,000 lives will be saved in 2010.

The release of each Zambike, Zambulance and Zamcart provides people with access to healthcare, education and economic opportunities that had previously been inaccessible to them. That is the goal of a.ker.fa and its affiliates throughout Africa: to change lives by creating opportunities through reliable transportation.

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