About Us

Mobility International Mission (formerly known as P.E.T. Zambia) was founded in 1995 in D.R. Congo, the location where the first Mobility Carts were made. However, due to all the unrest and war in that country in 2000, Mobility International Mission moved south to the neighboring country Zambia—and that is how Mobility International Mission was born.

Mobility International Mission has one goal in mind: To produce high-quality, low-cost carts to distribute to Africans who can’t walk. The hand-pedal powered personal transports can traverse Africa’s rugged terrain, helping those with leg disabilities maintain their dignity and regain their mobility.

The Mobility Carts consist of steel chassis with wooden boxes bolted to them. They’re strong, light, and easy for recipients to maintain. All told, the carts cost about $150 to construct and can go up to a decade between repairs. Here’s how we keep costs low and build quality high:

What’s in a Mobility Cart?

We begin by building the frames with steel from a local supplier. The steel company sells us the angle, tubing, and round bars for axles at cost because they, too, want to be part of our mission.

The lumber used in building the Mobility Carts is also sourced locally. We like to use pine because it’s strong and light, but we were spending about a thousand dollars per month to build 50 Mobility Carts. The solution, we quickly realized, was to not purchase final-cut quality lumber at the local lumberyard. Instead, because the longest piece of lumber needed is one meter, wherever possible, we began buying the off-cuts that they normally throw away. Now, we only spend about $1000 per year on lumber.

Most of the mechanical parts — the chains, sprockets, bearings, and wheels — are shipped from the United States and China. The chain is not a bicycle chain; it’s a heavy-duty industrial farm chain, which can sustain years of hard use. The sprockets are made of hardened steel. The tires are made from lightweight, solid rubber to prevent blowouts.

We’re currently working with a Chinese wheel supplier to purchase and ship wheels directly from China to our headquarters in Zambia. The wheels are the most expensive parts of the Mobility Cart.

Once a Mobility Cart is assembled, it’s time to paint it. A paint company in Kitwe, Zambia, also wanted to be part of our mission, so they mixed up a special coat of green paint and sold it to us at cost.

After a few finishing touches and assembly, the Mobility Cart is ready for distribution. We give the carts away for FREE to disabled people in need who can run the machines for years without incident. Many Mobility Carts that come in for first-time repairs are around five to eight years old and only need new running gear and wheels. We make the replacements and get the owners back on the road in no time.

Fulfilling Our Mission

Although we’re working toward a common goal, Mobility International Mission functions a bit differently than our Mobility International affiliates in the United States – Mobility Worldwide. Most of the mobility carts built in the United States are shipped to other countries and distributed in urban or suburban areas across the developing world, while Mobility International Mission exclusively helps rural Africans in Southern Central Africa; countries such as DR Congo, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Malawi. Zambia is landlocked and surrounded by eight countries. Other countries we want to serve are: Angola, Tanzania, Mozambique, Botswana, and Namibia.

Additionally, Mobility Worldwide production costs tend to be higher, as the materials aren’t locally sourced. Mobility Worldwide carts cost well over $300 to build, while we can build carts for about $150. However, the international organization’s carts are still an incredible value. All told, international affiliates have built more than 55,000 carts, 7,500 of which Mobility International Mission is responsible for.

Long Term Goals and Vision

We believe in Southern Central Africa there are millions of disabled people in the rural areas that need a cart. We did a survey many years ago in Congo. Congo is the country that gave birth to the first Mobility Carts ever made.

Back then, we asked our United Methodist Pastors to gather names of people in their villages who could use a mobility cart. That list quickly reached over 100,000 people. This means Mobility International Mission would need to build 1000 Mobility Carts each month for a decade to make a dent in Congo alone. The true number for all of Southern Central Africa is unknown. Mainly, because when an African is born with a disability or has an illness or accident that leaves them disabled, these people are considered culturally cursed.

Many times these individuals are outcasts from their village and society. These people—quite often children—will be placed in the corner of the home village and be forgotten and unloved, never to be talked to or about again. It takes concerned local tribal leaders to help us find them. Also, pastors, doctors, government Disabled Associations, and NGO’s help find these special people.

With this in mind, Mobility International Mission is currently the only affiliate completely building carts outside of the USA. The long-term vision of Mobility International Mission is to help build other Mobility IM affiliate workshops in Zambia’s nine neighboring countries by using Mobility International Mission as the model and main headquarters. The key to doing this is to build relationships with concerned individuals in each of these countries. This is essential.

If there are not real disabled people or groups or originations that work closely with the outreach of Mobility International Mission then we cannot build trust and accountability.

Encouragement for Mobility International Mission

Mobility International Mission relies entirely on donations. These donors want to know what their support is doing. I’m asked regularly by everyone; “Can you send more pictures and tell more stories” and I try. This close connection with Mobility Cart recipients is essential. However, it’s also one essential part missing with many of our United States Mobility Worldwide affiliates.

I would like to encourage each affiliate to have at least one country which they build mobility carts for. Also, just as important, they should have someone from that affiliate go to their country and build close personal contacts and relationships with their partnering country. I say it regularly: Building the mobility cart is the easy part, but building close relationships with the people you serve is the most important part and it takes a lot of time. It’s essential to hear their stories and see their communities and the places they live in. To look into their eyes and call them by name, picking them up out of the dirt and mud and putting them into their Mobility Cart. This is really what it’s all about. As a pastor/ missionary, I put on hands on them and pray for them by name. I can’t encourage strongly enough that each Mobility Worldwide affiliate should have at least one country and ambassador/missionary/representative, that can go build these relationships and then come back and tell their stories. If there is anything Mobility International Mission can do to help with this, about central Africa, we are more than willing to try to help. It’s also essential to build relationships with the local concerned originations, groups, or NGOs that help find the disabled. Only then can you have true records of what is happening with your partnering investment and have accountability from them. This is the key to keeping each affiliate and their donors happy and credible.

Another important point to keep in mind… Each country is unique and their needs are different. There is no way you can design one cart to meet all of the unique and different needs people will have. That is another wonderful reason for having a Mobility International Mission affiliate assembly workshop, and local representation, in the countries where they send mobility carts. And again, that’s why each affiliate needs to have their ambassador/missionary/representative. Everyone knows America’s first rule in business… “Know your customer’s needs.” You can’t sell it, or in Mobility IM case – ask for donations for it, if you don’t know personally about the recipients or the country they live in. As well as the originations, groups, or NGOs in these countries that help you serve the disabled.

Mobility Internation Mission relies entirely on donations, and we’ve come a long way since our genesis in 1995. Thanks to the generosity of everyday people, church groups, and foundations we’ve given the gift of mobility to tens of thousands of people around the world. With your support, we’ll continue to fulfill our mission by donating low-cost, high-quality carts to millions more.

Thank you ever so kindly….

Faithfully,

Rev. Delbert Groves