| Municipal
Coordinating Committee for Overseas Bicycle Assistance
(MCCOBA) is the result of collaboration between the NGO
JOICFP and the following thirteen local municipal Japanese
governments: Bunkyo City, Ota City, Setagaya City, Toshima
City, Nerima City, Arakawa City, Musashino
City, Kawaguchi City, Saitama City, Tokorozawa City, Ageo
City, Shizuoka City and Hiroshima City. |
Since
its establishment in 1988, MCCOBA has donated 57,317 bicycles
(as of March 2008) to ninety countries in Asia,
Oceania, the Middle East, Africa, Latin America, and the
Caribbean. Included in these bicycle donations are new
spare tires, tubes, flat tire repair sets, and air pumps.
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| In addition,
since 1998, MCCOBA has sent refurbished bicycles in their
disassembled form to a number of countries. Once the bicycles
reach their destinations, MCCOBA provides training in
bicycle assembly and repair so that recipients and other
villagers are able to maintain them. Not only does sending
disassembled versus preassembled bicycles increase shipping
cost efficiency, but also it serves as an important way
to ensure that the bicycles can be used for years to come. |
| JOICFP determines where to send bicycles
and their most effective and practical uses in cooperation
with the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), International
Planed Parenthood Federation(IPPF), and various private
groups who support and promote district and national government
activity in the areas of population, maternal health,
and family planning. |
Refurbished
bicycles are sent by MCCOBA to JOICFP project areas in
developing nations of Asia, Africa, Oceania, Latin America,
and the Middle East, and presented to grassroots health
volunteers. In addition, JOICFP reports the status of
bicycle use to MCCOBA’s participating municipal
governments on a regular basis.
JOICFP acts as a liaison for representatives visiting
from recipient countries by coordinating complimentary
visits with their respective locally-based national leaders
or other contributing groups. |
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| JOICFP oversees every aspect of the bicycle
shipping process, including bicycle forwarding and ship-loading.
It also deals with legal formalities which arise in the
process of importing and exporting bicycles, and handles
the program’s international coordination and business
communications. |
| Various local groups have shown their
support for MCCOBA recently by funding refurbishing and
shipping costs to recipient countries, receiving bicycles
from their respective municipal governments. One such
example is that of the Takatsuki City Green Lion’s
Club, who set the precedent by funding a recent shipment
of bicycles to Vietnam. |
| JOICFP regrets that it is unable to receive
bicycle donations, as all bicycles donated to developing
countries are obtained, processed and refurbished by municipal
governments. For details about how to participate, please
visit our Campaign menu. |
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