Behind the Scenes with Kyaro: Delivering Wheelchairs In East Africa

My name is Ellesmere Foley, and I’ve been volunteering with Kyaro since this May. Before this, I was already quite familiar with working and living in Arusha, as that is where I grew up and spent the majority of my life, but this summer I had the opportunity to expand my horizons even further.

Last month, I joined the Kyaro team on a visit to  Zanzibar to capture footage of a variety of projects. The trip lasted 12 days and included follow-up visits with Kyaro’s clients, wheelchair deliveries and assessments, and building a wheelchair-accessible swing set. Kyaro partnered with House of Hope, a healthcare center in Zanzibar that supports families with children needing medical attention for Spina Bifida and Hydrocephalus by providing temporary housing programs, pediatric physiotherapy, child neuro-rehabilitation, and health education. Last year, Kyaro made a variety of physical therapy equipment for their therapy center and provided wheelchairs for some of the children in their program. 

In this post, I want to take you through the trip day-by-day and give you a behind the scenes look at the work that goes into distributing assistive devices in Tanzania. I was accompanied on the trip by Kyaro’s Chief Communications Officer - Malika, Lead Technician - Nelson, Chief Operating Officer - Eamon, and CEO - Colman. I hope that this little journey will teach you something new and give you a better understanding of the challenges associated with this type of work.

We started at 3 am with a 12-hour overnight bus from Arusha to Dar es Salaam, followed immediately by a ferry ride to one of the islands of Zanzibar - Unguja. We settled into an apartment in Stone Town, a gorgeous part of the Zanzibar Town on the western coast of Unguja, before getting an early night’s sleep.

The next morning we loaded up our welding and construction equipment and went to House of Hope to meet their organizers and plan the upcoming week. The courtyard of House of Hope was full of physical therapy devices, all designed by Kyaro including parallel bars and rehabilitation stairs with a ramp. 

Next, we went to the local market to get the materials, including steel pipes for the swingset and the tools needed to build it. We then transported everything to the workshop, a nicely shaded piece of land next to a motorcycle repair shop. 

After measuring out the pipes we cut them and began to weld the frame of the swingset. The ice cream man came by on his bicycle just as work began, bringing with him many of the neighborhood children. All were very interested in our project and continued to check on our progress throughout the week. 

After a full day of work, we went to a famous local street market called Forodhani for dinner, where we found sugar cane juice, kebabs, and local street cats looking for scraps.

The next day we continued work on the swingset, and by the end of the afternoon, we had an upright frame. It was June 4th, otherwise known as World Assistive Technology Day, and as such Colman was invited by a local news station, AZAM TV, to be interviewed about Kyaro’s work and what the day meant for users of assistive technology. The interview was conducted in their city’s office building and live-streamed to the nation.

That evening, after finishing at the workshop, we went to a lovely concert at Dhow Countries Music Academy where we heard traditional Taarab music, a distinct musical genre that blends Arabic and African influences.

The following morning we arose bright and early to do an assessment and follow-up with a previous recipient of a Kyaro wheelchair. The first destination was quite far north, so we piled into House of Hope’s wheelchair-accessible van (a previous Kyaro project as seen in this video) and began the beautiful drive to the assessment, passing through Jozani forest, known for its Zanzibar Red Colobus Monkeys, and by many road-side stalls selling local produce. We arrived to meet 15-year-old Juma, who currently relies on a tricycle that is too small for him, forcing him to sit at an uncomfortable angle. Colman took his measurements and we will return in the coming weeks with a properly fitted tricycle wheelchair, ensuring Juma can commute to school comfortably and safely. 

Continuing to the follow-up visit, we got to see Zanzibar’s magnificent and world-famous coastline, highlighted by the swaying palm trees. Our next visit was with Mundhir, who has been using a Kyaro wheelchair for one year now, and his mother, who gave a very heartfelt speech addressed to other parents of children with mobility issues, urging them not to hide their children away or deny them their right to education. She emphasized that with the right assistive device, these children can pursue their goals and achieve their dreams.  

The next day we were back to work on the swing set. We finished sanding late in the afternoon and were able to get a coat of primer on just as the sun was setting. 

Friday was a very colorful day, as it was time to paint the swing set! I had a lot of fun creating a custom purple color to be used on the swings, as well as helping decide which color should go where. The work was also very entertaining for the children as they waited for school to start, and I was able to practice my colors in Swahili. I was even able to attempt to use the spray gun to help paint the bottom of the swing (it was harder than it looked, so I was entrusted with a not very visible part of the swing). The work went on until sunset again, so we hurried back to our apartment to pack for the next stage of the journey: Pemba Island. 

After the 5 am ferry ride to Pemba, we arrived on the second island of Zanzibar. The island itself is very fertile and as such very luscious and full of every plant species you can imagine. The contrast between the two major Zanzibar islands was striking. We drove from the port to the capital city, Chake Chake, quickly seeing why Pemba is called The Green Island. Once in Chake Chake we had lunch at a local restaurant: ugali, pilau, fish soup, and chapati, before taking a much-needed afternoon nap. We got to explore more of Chake Chake in the evening, a beautiful city with which our only complaint was the lack of coffee. 

After a (relatively) restful day, we awoke the next morning and drove to meet the Regional Commissioner of Chake Chake at his office. We met the Administrative Secretary Chake Chake District, Mr. Suleiman, and had a fruitful meeting discussing potential avenues of collaboration between Kyaro and the local Chake Chake government to make assistive technology accessible to the people of Pemba and raise awareness about the stigmas associated with disabilities. He most kindly provided us with a car to transport our wheelchairs to their final destination. So, after loading up the wheelchairs we climbed in the back of the pickup (don’t tell my mom) and drove to our first delivery location. 

We arrived at the house of Mr. Abbas, one of the parents who helped organize our trip to Pemba, where we met his son Mahmoud. Mahmoud is seven years old, would like to be a journalist, and has an infectious smile. He was elated to receive his brand new, blue wheelchair. This was my first delivery, and it was a wonderful start because Mahmoud was lovely to talk to and had a lot of fun trying out our camera in preparation for his aspiration of being a journalist. 

Colman and Nelson helped to fit the wheelchair and walk Mahmoud and his parents through the use and maintenance of the wheelchair using Kyaro’s custom instruction sheet, a project of last years’ volunteers. This includes information on how to care for, maintain, clean, fix, and address any issues that may arise with a wheelchair. 

We had a very enthusiastic goodbye before we returned to the road to deliver our next wheelchair to Hussein, a five-year-old with Cerebral Palsy. We arrived and met his grandma, before showing him his new wheelchair. I saw his face light up as it was pushed into the room before he promptly started crying as the crowd of onlooking siblings and Kyaro staff got too large. We left him with his family and a lollipop to get used to his wheelchair for a few hours in a less overstimulating environment. 

We continued across Pemba to visit Hadija. Although shy, Hadija was very sweet and was especially happy to show her new tricycle to her sisters. After a bit of practice, she was able to use her tricycle to go on the rather bumpy roads near her house and navigate the potholes. Hadija’s new tricycle quickly gathered all the village children, who wanted to see how it worked.

After leaving Hadija, we returned to Hussein to adjust his wheelchair and train his grandmother. After some time to settle in he was feeling better and thoroughly enjoyed Nelson pushing him around outside as the sun set. 

We drove back to our guest house as the famous Pemba Flying Foxes started their nightly hunt.

The next morning we met the Director of the First Vice President's Office of Pemba. Mr. Ahmed Abubakar. We gave him Kyaro’s annual report for 2023 and he was very supportive of Kyaro’s work and offered to be a point of contact going forward. 

After our meeting, we began the rather long car ride to deliver the final wheelchair. Chake Chake is located in the center of Pemba, and our delivery was at the northernmost tip of the island. Along the way, we stopped at Kojani island and took a boat to get to another village where Abbas had learned there was a mother with a child with a disability seeking help. We went to speak with her and determine whether any of Kyaro’s devices would be helpful to her. We concluded that at the moment, the family was able to keep the child healthy and supported without the need of any assistive devices, but the House of Hope staff will continue to check in on the situation over time.

After our quick boat ride we continued our journey north. We arrived around in the afternoon and were greeted by the family with fresh coconuts, straight from the trees. There we met Asha, a very chatty 20-year-old who was excited to use her wheelchair to go to visit her grandmother for Eid. 

While we were there, I even succeeded in my goal of catching a chicken (with assistance), and we were treated to fresh mango and ginger juice as well as tea/chai and homemade chapatis. Asha’s family was very hospitable and I felt lucky to be part of such a wholesome experience. 

After saying goodbye to Asha, her family took us to see a local landmark, a lighthouse on the very tip of the island, and were able to see just how blue and calm the ocean was, a view made much better with the baobab trees scattered around the coast. 

After saying goodbye to our hosts in Pemba and stocking up on Zanzibar apples (a personal favorite of mine), we took the ferry back to Unguja to make final touches to the swing. We finished under a very atmospheric sunset and had one last dinner at the infamous Jaws Corner in Stone Town.  

On our final morning, we revisited House of Hope to have wheelchair users test the swing. Seeing the children's reactions, their excitement to get on and reluctance to get off the swings, made us forget our exhaustion. It was incredibly fulfilling to witness firsthand how our efforts helped include the children in play with the others, and brought joy to those we aimed to support.

Zanzibar was an incredible experience for me. I have lived in Tanzania for 15 years and yet I was able to experience some of my favorite memories on this less than two-week trip. As such, I would like to say thank you to Malika, Nelson, Eamon and Colman for inviting me on such a wonderful trip. 

I hope these stories have inspired you and shed light on the remarkable journeys of just a few of Kyaro’s clients, alongside the dedicated individuals working to champion inclusion in Tanzania. You can find more inspiring stories on Kyaro’s Impact page (https://www.kyaroassistive.org/en/user-stories), and consider supporting Kyaro’s ongoing efforts (https://www.kyaroassistive.org/en/donate).