Access to transport for the base of the pyramid Measuring the Impact of Bicycles in Burkina Faso Johann Peier 06-604-300
[email protected] Master Thesis University of St. Gallen Master of Arts in International Affairs and Governance (MIA) Ph.D. Urs Heierli 18th May 2015 Measuring the Impact of Bicycles in Burkina Faso Management Summary This study is an attempt to determine the role and impact of the bicycle on people’s lives in the rural areas of Burkina Faso. The aim is to understand the importance of the bicycle as a means to make routine tasks easier and, furthermore, to better understand how it contributes to the improvement of the prevailing living conditions in the longer term. The bicycle in part gains its importance from the fact that the population of rural Burkina Faso is strongly affected by a widespread lack of infrastructure. As a result, people most often face large distances separating them from the places they have to reach. Therefore, an adequate means of transport is required by them not only to avoid wasting long hours walking on a daily basis but also to prevent them having to suffer from transporting heavy loads by foot. It can be said that people having no choice but to walk are prevented from taking full advantage of their potential. Taking the prevailing conditions in rural Burkina Faso into consideration, the findings in this study showed that the use of the bicycle resulted in an extensive amount of time being saved. As such, it is not only possible for people to accomplish tasks more efficiently but also to enlarge the number of activities being done.