Source: http://allafrica.com/stories/201409181471.html   Edited by Rita Murphy.  Photo: I. Kaledzi/DW
Winifred Selby, a 19 year old social entrepreneur from Ghana, founded Ghana Bamboo Bikes in 2009 and it has become a huge success. She decided she wanted to found her own company that would be committed to promoting fair trade and creating environmentally responsible products. She started the business with co-founders Bernice Dapaah and Kwame Kyei.
She also wanted to provide job opportunities for other young Ghanians and currently employs about 30 young women. Her bikes, made from bamboo, are becoming more and more popular.
Selby’s bike business is based in Kumasi, Ghana’s second biggest city. This is where the team assembles the bikes that are suitable for the country’s high terrain and rough roads.
“A frame is $250, and we produce 90,” Selby said. “If the cost of producing a bamboo frame is 150 and we are selling at 250, then it means we get a profit of 100.”
Selby and her colleagues hope to spread branches of the company across the country.