Rwanda Bookmobile Initiative is partnering with Ready for Reading, based in Rwinkwavu, to create a project called "Reading Riders." The project will train and empower librarians at partner libraries, ECD centers and schools across the country to use bicycles to improve their outreach to serve their local communities.  Reading Riders are librarian-storytellers who carry books with them on their bicycles.  They will stop to read stories to children and in some cases to lend books.

A shipping container filled with over 450+ donated bicycles has arrived at the Rwinkwavu Community Library and Learning Center.  The project will allocate bicycles across the country and will pursue a mission of inspiring Rwandan children to love to read. The shipping container was filled with donated bicycles in Washington, USA and Vancouver, Canada and sent via cargo ship.  A truck delivered the container from the port and a crane lifted the container into its new home in Rwinkwavu.

"We are so excited to pursue this project and to reach more children across Rwanda.  We love to create storytelling radio and tv shows for children, but this allows to reach some of those children who cannot access the media," says Shannon Porthault, one of the co-founders of Rwanda Bookmobile.

"This is a wonderful new chapter in our story," says Betsey Dickey, founder of Ready for Reading, "as we have already started a test phase for this program and the children, and their teachers love it.  Our Reading Riders do, too!"

The project is extremely grateful to the people in USA and Canada who donated bicycles and funds to bring these bicycles to Rwanda.  During the planning phase of this shipment, the founder of "Bicycles for Humanity" passed away, and as a tribute to his kind spirit, the Reading Riders bike maintenance shop will be dedicated to his memory.