Who is Aussie Books For Zim
http://www.aussiebooksforzim.org
At Aussie Books for Zim (hereafter ABZ) we collect gently used and new books, stationery and library furnishings (otherwise destined for landfill) and ship them to Zimbabwe to set up libraries in rural disadvantaged communities. We seek to improve literacy in disadvantaged communities and to empower children with knowledge and the confidence to help them shape the world they live in.
Why Aussie Books For Zim
ABZ was born after Founder/CEO Dr Alfred Chidembo saw two unrelated 'problems' in different continents, with a potential of mutually beneficial outcomes if sync'd together. One end was a problem of too many books in Wollongong & Australia wide going to landfill each year (libraries send approximately 5 million books per year to landfill), impacting negatively on the environment. On the other end was millions of children in rural Zimbabwe with no access to books, thereby limiting their education potential and consequently their livelihoods. Having started off from a rural school himself with no books and knowing first-hand how education can positively impact one's life after his personal experience of having graduated with a PhD in Materials Engineering from University of Wollongong, Dr Chidembo's strong conviction of education being an important avenue of empowering individuals and communities led him to establish ABZ.
There is a strong link between illiteracy and poverty. For ABZ, its not just about books but its about bringing Life, Hope and Empowerment to disadvantaged children and communities. By providing reading material and improving literacy, we empower children to achieve more than what they see in the confines of their villages.
Some ABZ Wins
ABZ is a young charity that registered on 22 June 2015. It has no paid employees and is run by 100% volunteers, who are well established professionals in diverse fields who resonate with the cause. ABZ is currently a resident company at IAccelerate, University of Wollongong's business incubator program. Some of ABZ's wins to date include:
- Shipped 30,000 books and stationery from Australia to Zimbabwe.
- Established 3 rural libraries to date (Mavhurazi Primary School, in Mudzi, Chinembiri SDA Primary School in Rusape and Parirewa Secondary School in Domboshava, Zimbabwe) with more currently underway.
- Shipped over 3,000 (864 kg of books) from The Netherlands to Zimbabwe.
- Donated AU$15 000 worth of rugby equipment donated to Victoria High School in Masvingo, Zimbabwe.
- Melbourne - 20 foot container filled with brand new books worth over $2 million, donated by Bookleggers Bookstore as it was closing down. This container is ready for shipment to Zimbabwe, for which this crowdfunding is being done to raise funds to enable this.
- Wollongong - 40 foot container that is also full of books ,library furnishings, stationary, lab equipment etc, and ready for shipment to Zimbabwe
ABZ's current challenge is funding the shipment of the 2 containers (40 ft. in Wollongong and 20 ft. in Melbourne) in order to set up over 30 libraries by the end of 2019.
How much do we need?
We need $16,000 to pay the shipping costs for the two containers or we will miss out on impacting over 6000 children in rural Zimbabwe.
We have two containers full of books sitting on the docks Melbourne and Wollongong waiting to be sent to Zimbabwe to establish libraries for children and communities with no access to books.
One container in Melbourne holds more than $2 million worth of books while the other in Wollongong has over 60 000 books, library furnishings, uniforms, stationary etc. These shipments will enable the establishment of 30 school and community libraries, with a direct benefit of minimum 6000 children in 2019 alone. The goods were generously donated by parents, children, libraries, and businesses in Melbourne, Canberra, Sydney and Wollongong.
With your help, we can get the two containers to Zimbabwe before Christmas and distributed in time for the 2019 year so that children can start improving their literacy.
Change a child's life?
ABZ is an Australian registered charity with deductible gift recipient status (ABN 13462778021). ABZ knows how books can transform lives and together with you, would like to ensure that children in disadvantaged communities can also have a shot in life through education. As mentioned before, ABZ’s activities are not just about books only but are about giving HOPE, LIFE, EMPOWERMENT and BUILDING COMMUNITIES”.
Choose a reward and donate to the cause!
[1] Statistics show that Australian libraries send at least five million books yearly to landfill.
