Reza’s Cycling Fundraiser in Nepal for Azafady’s Project Sekoly

Posted on 09 June 2010

Reza Pakravan joined Azafady’s short-term volunteering community construction programme and helped build a school for 2 weeks in April 2009 as a break from his career as a financial analyst. He was so inspired by Madagascar and Azafady’s work in the southeast that, since returning, he has continued to raise funds for Azafady’s Project Sekoly; building schools in the southeast of Madagascar. Last month Reza completed a 1000km cycle across the Nepalese Himalayan mountains and he has raised an amazing £15,000 (so far!) for Project Sekoly – here is an extract from an article from Ekantipur(a Nepalese newspaper) about his amazing achievements…

What does it take to convince yourself you want to do something for society? Is it money? Or power? Or rather, simpler motives such as enthusiasm, determination, and generosity?

For Reza Pakravan, an Iranian financial analyst living in London, helping others is as inseparable a part of life as doing laundry, or cycling to work. And while he continues working at Brit Insurance in the U.K., he also cycled around Nepal to raise funds for the construction of schools in Madagascar, an island just off the south-eastern coast of Africa.

Pakravan’s story begins last year, while he was volunteering with the NGO Azafady in Madagascar. Azafady, a registered U.K. charity, works in south-east Madagascar to help alleviate poverty, and improve the general standards of life. Pakravan was helping them build a school, and he decided to continue this effort on his own. He started his own fund raising campaign, Jellybabies on a Bike, to raise money for two more schools. He fondly recalls the reason behind the unusual name of an educational campaign: “I handed a pack of Jellybaby pastilles to children in Madagascar, and they started calling me Jellybaby because of that.” The on-a-bike part was easy enough to place: Pakravan cycles to work everyday in the U.K., pedalling 32km both ways.

In order to raise the £15,000 needed for the first school, Pakravan started off with donations from various people and his employers. He collected a total of £13,500 before he finalised his self-funded 1,000 km trip to Nepal, to raise the remaining £1,500.

Pakravan had an ulterior motive behind this unusual cycling trip as well: Not only would he raise sufficient funds for his trip, but he would also get to visit Nepal, widely considered a haven for mountain-biking. He was joined by his best friend Marco Gustapane, a cyclist himself, who wanted to help him with the fundraising.

Pakravan’s trip wasn’t as simple as it sounded though. It seemed to be plagued with misfortune from the very start. The eruption of the Icelandic volcano Eyjafjallajokull meant that Pakravan, along with millions of other tourists, were stuck in airport terminals around the world. Plus, Nepal itself was going through political turmoil, and a nation-wide shutdown was in the pipeline. Due to the flight disruption caused by the volcano, Pakravan and Gustapane only managed to cycle a week together, after which Gustapane had to return home, leaving his friend alone to complete the task.

Despite these setbacks, Pakravan persisted, believing that the benefits far outweighed the risks. “It’s hard to believe, but children in Madagascar often walk 20 km every day to reach their schools. They have to cross crocodile-infested rivers, only to reach an already overcrowded school.” The money he raised would then not only help provide education, but also prevent the students from the risks involved in going to a faraway school.

Pakravan must be one of the few tourists who viewed the strike shutdown as a good thing. “Cycling during the strike allowed me to get in touch with ordinary Nepali people’s problems and made me realise their frustrations with what is happening in Nepal which hidden from tourists eyes,” he says. “I met a lot of interesting characters, and learned quite a bit about their lives as well,” he continues.

While cycling during a banda sounds appealing to some, Pakravan almost quit because of it. True, the roads are empty, but the shops are closed as well, including shops selling food and water. En route from Hetauda to Daman, Pakravan seriously considered quitting more than once on the 57km-uphill road. “Because of the strike, there was not a single vehicle in sight, and none of the shops along the sides of the road were open, and I had run out of food and water,” he says. “I thought I would stop and return more than once, but continued. Luckily, I met some masons who were having their mid-day meal, and as soon as they saw my condition, they eagerly invited me to join them.” Needless to say, the thirsty and starved Pakravan accepted their invitation. “I was saved by farmers while I was dehydrated and about to faint due to starvation. They shared whatever they had with me, including food, water and wine!”

Pakravan has managed to raise the required £1500. Now, his employers, Brit Insurance, have decided to match his effort with another £5000 pound as an extra fund. This money will be used towards the building of a third school in Madagascar. And though Pakravan has now returned after completing his commitment, he hopes to return to Nepal soon. “I was touched by the kindness, hospitality and culture of the people here. This country has a lot to offer.”