‘They have hardly anything’, says Cardiff organiser
CARDIFF volunteers are appealing for donations to help Santa reach children on islands off Africa this year.
Every year, the team based in Guinea-Bissau work to send a container from Riverside to children on the Bijagós islands.
People are being asked to donate any children’s clothes, toys and books to help ensure every child gets to experience joy this Christmas.
“They have a very basic way of life there and they kind of greatly appreciate these little drops,” said Nick Lewis, who is organising the donations at South Riverside Community Development Centre.
The donations are loaded into a container, which volunteers then drive to Portugal before being transported to Guinea-Bissau.
Nadir, who leads the project over in Guinea-Bissau, takes over from there as her team help distribute the donations to the 32,000 people on the four main islands.
These islands are situated off the coast of Guinea-Bissau, about 4,638km away from Cardiff.
The Bijagós islands are predominately rural, with their economy relying on farming and fishing.
They also suffer from a lack of infrastructure and communication links, making contacting the mainland difficult.
“You wouldn’t believe, they just have hardly anything. Guinea-Bissau itself is a poor country,” said Mr Lewis.
To add to these difficulties, Covid-19 has meant transporting the goods across borders has become even more difficult, but the volunteers in Cardiff and Guinea-Bissau are determined to persevere and bring Christmas cheer.
- If you have any children’s clothes, toys and books, you can drop them off at: South Riverside Community Development Centre, Brunel Street, Riverside, CF11 6ES by December 14.
- If you would like to know more, you can contact the team on 07497 591 530.
