Entrepreneurship and Empowerment through GCS Bicycle Innovations
GCS wants to improve the lives of rural villagers through affordable, quality technology.
There are over 500 million smallholder farmers worldwide living on less than $2/day; their primary tools are only a hoe for ploughing and their hands for pulling weeds. The majority of these farmers have access to a cell phone and cell phone coverage, but have no means to keep their phones charged. Their ascent out of poverty is often dependent on the development of infrastructure.
GCS is creating products that allow farmers to climb out of poverty independent of infrastructure development. Through our bicycle-based portable products, we bring technology to the people. GCS is working to ensure that all people, no matter their income level, have access to technology.
Sobre ti
Sobre ti
Nombre
Jodie
Apellido
Wu
URL de Twitter
URL de Facebook
Sobre tu organización
Nombre de la organización
Global Cycle Solutions
Sitio web de la organización
Teléfono de la organización
+255766909766
Dirección de la organización
P.O. Box 2722
País de la organización
Tanzania, AR
Países en donde este proyecto está creando impacto social
Tanzania, AR
Tu organización es
Empresa
¿Cuánto tiempo ha estado operando la organización?
1-5 años
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Innovación
Título del Formulario de Inscripción
Entrepreneurship and Empowerment through GCS Bicycle Innovations
¿Qué cambios quieres traer al mundo?
GCS wants to improve the lives of rural villagers through affordable, quality technology.
There are over 500 million smallholder farmers worldwide living on less than $2/day; their primary tools are only a hoe for ploughing and their hands for pulling weeds. The majority of these farmers have access to a cell phone and cell phone coverage, but have no means to keep their phones charged. Their ascent out of poverty is often dependent on the development of infrastructure.
GCS is creating products that allow farmers to climb out of poverty independent of infrastructure development. Through our bicycle-based portable products, we bring technology to the people. GCS is working to ensure that all people, no matter their income level, have access to technology.
¿Cuáles son las actividades principales de tu proyecto?
1. Designing and developing products with customers in the forefront
In the past two years, GCS has assembled a portfolio of products to meet the needs of rural villagers. Because our customers are our #1 priority, we continually listen to their product ideas and suggestions for design improvements. When customers asked us for a motorcycle battery powered phone charger, we developed and delivered it. When customers asked us for a hand sheller affordable to poorest of the poor, we started bringing $2 hand shellers to market. We design products where we see a great need and demand.
2. Creating the market linkages to ensure that our products reach customers in rural communities.
The key to GCS’ success is figuring out how to get our product into the hands of the villagers. To do this, we are working with partners to establish a distribution and warehousing network and train people in each location on the repair and maintenance of our devices. Additionally, we are setting up entrepreneurs and Sales Ambassadors to sell our products in locations inaccessible by our sales representatives.
¿Qué es innovador acerca de tu iniciativa? ¿Cómo es que es un nuevo aporte al campo?
GCS is bringing technology TO the people in a way that creates economic development in rural areas without the need for massive investments in infrastructure.
We are doing this on two major fronts:
1) Our technology platform enables micro-entrepreneurship for the poorest farmers. The bicycle has always been used as a mode of transportation; now we are transforming it into a vehicle for simplifying some of the most difficult tasks facing rural communities. For example, our products help farmers shell their corn 10x faster than shelling by hand and allow villagers to charge their phone without the added costs and fees associated with going to a distant charging station.
2) Our distribution model involves setting up distribution centers and direct sales ambassadors in the deepest of villages to educate villagers about the benefits of our products. We partner with microfinance institutions to ensure that anyone who wants to purchase our devices can afford to do so.
We are all about technology access. There are maize farmers all over East Africa who are forced to beat maize with a stick because the only alternative is a tractor maize sheller that serves large-scale farms only. Everyday, villagers are buying cell phones with the little money they have, but then they turn off their phone to keep the charge longer despite family trying to reach them and send money from town. With our bicycle innovations, we're bringing technology right to their doorstep, as product and service.
¿En qué fase está el proyecto?
Operando entre 1-5 años
Háblanos de la comunidad con la que estás trabajando, por ejemplo, sus condiciones económicas, las estructuras políticas, normas y valores, las tendencias demográficas, la historia y la experiencia con los esfuerzos de compromiso.
In coordination with “Kilimo Kwanza”, the government's Agriculture First initiative, GCS is currently focusing on bringing its products to the 9,000 villages across Tanzania that have limited access to resources and technology. GCS' current product portfolio of a maize sheller and phone charger has been a response to the needs of these communities.
In most of East Africa, maize is the staple food. During the harvest, youth spend many of their days beating maize repeatedly with a stick to remove the kernels from the maize cob. In the process, they damage the maize, and the remainder is often subject to rats ,weevils, and other pests which lead to losses of 20-25% of the harvest. 80% of Tanzania's population work in agriculture or related sectors, and 70% of these farmers have no access to any technology aside from a hoe. Those with tractors often leave them rusting in the field due to lack of spare parts.
In addition, nearly half of the Tanzanian population owns a cell phone, but only 10% of Tanzania has access to electricity. They are left to charge their phones each week at costs as high as half of their daily wage. Moreover, rural Tanzanians earn less than half of what their urban counterparts earn and have much less access to government services.
GCS' aim is to bring products to the world's bottom billion, the segment that is earning less than $2/day. Our main beneficiaries are unemployed youth, rural farmers, and the women who often shell maize with their fingers. For our entrepreneurs, our technology can double their income in one month. For our farmer users, they have savings that pay for the technology in two harvest seasons.
Compartir la historia del fundador y lo que inspiró al fundador para iniciar este proyecto
In 2008, I (Jodie Wu) returned from a class trip to Tanzania, disappointed that my ambitions to change the world in 3 weeks were unrealized. I had brought a stationary, pedal-powered corn sheller with me and saw people’s excitement as the machine shelled their corn (removing kernels from the cob), yet most of them would never be able to afford it. I had to do something. There was a clear need for the development of simpler technologies to help them take the first step in escaping poverty. How could I make this technology more accessible to the people who need it most?
As I lay in bed, jet-lagged, I had a Eureka moment. Instead of creating pedal-powered devices that cut up a bicycle in their construction, why not make bicycle add-ons that allow technology to be shared among communities as entrepreneurs bike from place to place? And thus, GCS was born.
I was soon leading a team of engineers on the project. In the classroom, we soon had a working prototype. That summer, I took the design to Tanzania, working directly with a vocational school. As soon as it was built, the students started begging me to let them take the machine home to shell their parents' maize. People started renting the machine out to use it.
I had to bring this idea to scale. I put together a business plan team, and one year later, GCS won the Development Track and the Audience Choice Award of the MIT $100K Business Plan Competition. At that moment, I decided to give up my full scholarship and start Global Cycle Solutions, and I’ve been in the field ever since, building GCS from the ground up.
Impacto social
Esta presentación se trata de
Describa cómo tu proyecto ha tenido éxito y la forma en que éste mide.
In the past year alone, we have sold over 400 bicycle-powered maize shellers, 300 sheller hand tools, 700 bicycle-powered phone chargers, and 400 motorcycle-powered phone chargers, impacting over 5,000 villagers across Tanzania. In those sales, we have reached rural villagers in 19 of Tanzania’s 26 regions and the countries of Uganda, Kenya, Ghana, Rwanda, and Zambia.
This season, we will be expanding our metrics to include the social impact we are creating, such as how much maize that has been saved from maize weevils by using our technology, how much income people have earned using our products, and how much time and money people have saved using our products
As we expand our reach, we plan to collect more stories from the field to celebrate the successes of individuals who are using our products. The stories that we have received so far show entrepreneurs who doubled his income by serving farms in his community. Or a customer who reported that harvesting her corn is no longer a burden now that she has our machine. And a preacher who was so excited about the promise in our machine that he delivered an impassioned sermon and five customers bought corn shellers on the spot.
¿Cuántas personas han sido afectadas por el proyecto?
1.001- 10.000
¿Cuántas personas podrían verse afectadas por el proyecto en los próximos tres años?
Más de 10,000
¿Cómo va a evolucionar tu proyecto durante los próximos tres años?
We will expand our network to include 500 GCS Ambassadors serving customers throughout East Africa, empowering over 20,000 microe-ntrepreneurs and 5 million farmers. Additionally, we plan to explore distribution to other areas of the world, given the significant interest that we have received from countries in West Africa for our maize sheller and added interest for our bicycle charger in the US and European markets.
On the product side, we will undertake greater product development, develop branding with increased marketing, and prepare ourselves for global distribution. We'll expand our product portfolio to include bicycle powered grain grinders, water pumps, and rice threshers so that we may provide solutions for all major crops grown throughout the world.
Sustenibilidad
¿Qué barreras pueden dificultar el éxito de tu proyecto y cómo piensa resolverlas?
Most of our customers are actually the hardest segment to reach...they might not own a radio to hear an ad, they may not be able to read our brochures, they might not be be accessible by road because the road has been washed out by the rains, they might not have any cash on hand, and they are very risk-averse to adopting a new product.
From our past two years in working in Tanzania, we've realized there are three major areas that we must tackle in order to succeed as a company...
1. conducting the marketing and education for people to generate demand for our product
2. setting up distributors from which customers can get the product, and
3. partnering with microfinance institutions so that entrepreneurs and farmers alike can afford our product.
If any of these pieces are missing, GCS cannot make a sale. We've worked to overcome this challenge by creating a direct sales force of sales ambassadors, setting up a distribution network with TFA and other large agrodealers, and working with microfinance institutions such as YOSEFO and Mbinga Community Bank; however, these organizations only cover a fraction of Tanzania. It will be critical that we effectively train sales ambassadors in all areas of Tanzania. Right now,over 100 more districts need our products. GCS must ensure it effectively trains ambassadors and builds strong partnerships to then expand its reach.
Cuéntanos sobre tus alianzas.
GCS currently works with various partners who give GCS access to different segments of our market.
We work with the Tanganyika Farmer's Association, the largest distributor of maize seed, who stock our products in their shops located in 12 major towns across Tanzania. To develop relationships with agrodealers, we work Citizens' Network of Foreign Affairs Tanzania Agrodealer Strengthening Program, who have given us access to their dealer database and invited us to their village demonstrations and training.
Realizing that this is not enough to reach markets, we have shifted our focus to working with microfinance institutions to ensure everyone can afford the device, including Mbinga Community Bank in southern Tanzania, Youth Self-Employment Foundation (YOSEFO) in Tanzania's highlands which serves as the country's breadbasket, and Tanzania's network of Village Community Banks (VICOBA) and Savings and Credit Cooperatives. These partnerships have allowed for farmers to access loans to get our product.
Additionally, we are partnering with the Orgut-SEDIT infrastructure of field supervisors and field trainers to act as our sales ambassadors, in which they get direct commissions from their sales. We are working with the 200 field trainers throughout the country so that we may reach the 60,000 VICOBA members throughout Tanzania.
Other partners include Nature Friends Zambia and LAP Investments, who have enabled us to reach customers in Zambia and Uganda and spread our impact across East Africa.
Actual presupuesto anual en dólares americanos.
$100,000‐250,000
Explica tu selección.
GCS currently has 5 regional sales officers who support our partners and direct sales force, 4 technicians who build GCS' chargers and adapter sets, and 4 admin who manage logistics, partnerships, accounting, reporting, and business development.
Much of GCS' expenses has gone into providing regional sales officers with the tools and resources to extensively train sales ambassadors for all of Tanzania and building strong partnerships with microfinance institutions, NGOs, and distributors.
GCS' operations were made possible by a Series A round of investment of $200,000 from friends, $31,000 winnings from the Development Track of MIT's $100K Business Plan Competition and the Audience Choice Award in 2009, 30,000 from the first year of my Echoing Green Fellowship, $15,000 from the Segal Family Foundation, and over $1,000 from the Legatum Foundation at MIT.
¿Cómo se va a fortalecer tu proyecto durante los próximos tres años?
For 2011, our main focus is increasing customer education about the benefits of our products and strengthening access to financing for our smallholder farmers. With our current resources, we have not even reached 10% of Tanzania's farmers, most of whom are living within 20 km of a major town. We still have an untapped market of 20 million maize farmers and 15 million cell phone owners without electricity.
To overcome this, we are now training village sales ambassadors to ensure we deepen our penetration. Our sales reps are now passing through every village via motorcycle to recruit and train sales ambassadors to be our voice in the village, whether it is an unemployed youth, a mother needing extra income, a district agricultural officer, or a village chairman.
After building a strong and robust distribution network in Tanzania, we plan to scale our programs to East Africa by the end of 2012 and countries in West Africa by 2013. Our strength as a company will depend on building strong relationships with our partners, and ensuring that our products are meeting the needs of our customers.
As we reach economies of scale, we will expand our product porfolio to reach the needs of a wider breadth of farmers. Our engineers are working on innovative concepts to expand our offering of peripherals compatible with the GCS platform. In the near future, we want to engage our rural customers in a more meaningful way to co-develop products that address important needs. Our pipeline of future products includes a GCS bicycle-powered grinder and a GCS bicycle-powered water pump.
Desafíos
¿Qué barreras al empleo aborda tu innovación? Por favor, selecciona un máximo de tres por orden de relevancia para el proyecto.
PRIMARIA
La falta de eficiencia
SECUNDARIA
Falta de habilidades y capacitación
TERCIARIA
Subempleo
Por favor, describe cómo la innovación específicamente aborda las barreras mencionadas anteriormente.
Most of our customers live on less than $2/day and have a hard time finding adequate employment. GCS fosters the idea that, with just a $150 investment, anyone can start a business providing maize shelling and phone charging services to nearby villagers. Alternatively, owners of our maize shelling devices can rent them out and earn a passive stream of income during the harvest season.
The most common method of shelling maize is beating a sack of it with a stick or having women and children flick off individual kernels of corn with their fingers. Both of these methods are extremely inefficient and time consuming. Our maize shelling products drastically shorten the time needed to perform these tasks, and leaves the shelled maize undamaged and less vulnerable to rats and weevils.
¿Cómo estás haciendo crecer el impacto de tu organización o iniciativa?
Por favor, selecciona un máximo de tres maneras posibles en orden de relevancia para ti.
Primary
Hacer crecer el alcance geográfico: Mundial
SECUNDARIA
Mejorar el impacto actual a través de la adición de servicios complementarios
TERCIARIA
Aprovechar la tecnología
Por favor, describe cuál de las actividades para crecer están en curso o previstas para el futuro inmediato.
We are currently working to offer alternative payments options for our customers through partnerships with organization such as YOSEFO. We plan to have members roll the price of our products into their existing loan accounts. In order to reach villagers in remote locations we have begun recruiting Ambassadors who will educate customers and sell our products on a commission-only basis. Our current Ambassadors are Field Trainers for VICOBA and are well trusted by the communities they work in. Since interacting with villagers is a normal part of their job, our Ambassadors are eager to use our products as a way to supplement their income. Our Sales Representatives will be responsible for recruiting and training Ambassadors in each region of Tanzania.
Colaboras con algunos de los siguientes organismos: (Indica todos los que corrrespondan)
ONGs/organizaciones sin fines de lucro, Academia/Universidades.
De ser así, ¿estas colaboraciones han ayudado a que tu innovación tenga éxito?
Because of the government's initiative of Kilimo Kwanza, or "Agriculture First", GCS has gained leverage in working with district agricultural officers to introduce our products as tools for economic development.
MIT's D-Lab has provided us with connections to MayaPedal in Guatemala and ApproDesign in India, who helped us with our designs for the corn sheller and phone charger respectively, and in promoting students projects in the development of new bicycle technologies for Tanzania.
We are also collaborating with a non-profit engineering firm called Catapult Design and looking to contract them, thus improving the appearance and design of our products to ensure that we have a quality, final products that are designed for larger-scale manufacturing and maximum customer satisfaction.
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 | 43 weeks agoJacob Varghese said: Looks to me an excellent concept with lot of reuse value, and potential for scale and growth. Though you have mentioned linkage with an ... about this Competition Entry. - leer más > |
| 49 weeks agoJodie Wu updated this Competition Entry. |
| 49 weeks agoJodie Wu updated this Competition Entry. |
| 49 weeks agoJodie Wu updated this Competition Entry. |
| 49 weeks agoJodie Wu submitted this idea. |