12.8.2021

Rickshaw during lockdown

Rickshaw drivers ride a rickshaw that resembles a bicycle and a tricycle at the same time. They transport passengers or cargo from place to place to earn a living. You can find them everywhere in Bangladesh, in cities and villages. They get up early, work long hours in the heat of the sun or even in the rain. It's hard work with little income.

In Bangladeshi cities today we can see many modern means of transport carrying people over short and longer distances. In contrast, rickshaw is a very old way of transporting people and goods. Rickshaw drivers are poor, they cannot afford to buy a motorized rickshaw for example. Their lot is to sweat, pedal and live hand to mouth so to speak. Many of their children do not go to school because their parents do not have the means to pay for school uniforms, books, supplies and school fees. But every rickshaw driver wants a good education for his children, a better job and thus a better standard of living.Some rickshaw pullers leave their villages and families to earn more income in the city so that the family is better off. They are often very tired. And because their homes are far away, they take the rickshaw under a tree or somewhere shady, get into a comfortable position and rest for a while.The rickshaw income is low. They are dependent on the number of customers and the distance they need to be transported, or if they are elderly then on the distances they have enough power for. The outflow of customers caused by the covid-19 disease only makes their situation worse. Restrictions and lockdowns have caused a reduction in the movement of people and a dramatic drop in already small revenues.Bangladeshi schools have been closed since 17 March 2020. Only the better schools have online teaching. But for that, children need a computer or at least a smart phone. And the rickshaw drivers can't afford that for their children. So most rickshaw drivers' children are deprived of education because they don't have a smartphone. Hopefully they will not give up the opportunity to get education later and not follow in the footsteps of their rickshaw-pulling fathers.The BanglaKids programme helps children go to school. It provides them with food aid in times of coronavirus. Meanwhile, the closure of schools in Bangladesh lasts until 31 August 2021.

Read more about rickshaws and rickshaws here.


More information about program Support BanglaKids

BanglaKids is a development program of ADRA Czech Republic.
Since 1999 we have provided education to 6,500 children in Bangladesh.
Together, we’re giving them an opportunity for a better future.

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