Botswana 2026

In 2023, a group of five cyclists rode over 2400 kilometers (1500 miles) from the Atlantic Ocean in Namibia to the Indian Ocean in Mozambique. Two of the cyclists were paraplegic and used hand cycles, a first ever adaptive cycling journey across these five countries.  The endeavor would not have been possible without the two support vans and hundreds of local cyclists along the way. The Botswana Council for the Disabled (BCD) rode all 700 kilometers across Botswana with the team. 

Buoyed by this initial success, Bidii Yetu now will serve as a catalyst for African organizations that wish to promote inclusive cycling events and raise further awareness of the enormous unrealized potential of persons with disabilities.  This year Bidii Yetu and the BCD are co-organizing a ride to demonstrate the power of cycling events that include both disabled and two-wheel cyclists. Our event will be a 1000 kilometer (600+ mile) ride 24 October – 7 November 2026.  It will start in Gaborone, Botswana’s capital in its south, and end at its northern border with Zambia.   The route will have us stopping in villages and towns to spread the word about how adaptive sports benefit everyone, not just persons with disabilities, and to advocate for greater inclusion of the disabled in everyday sports and recreation.  

This  two-week odyssey presents a different challenge from the Bidii Yetu 2023 ride from Namibia to Mozambique.  We will be taking a larger group, requiring extra organisation and support crew. We will use this experience to develop a model for disabled persons’ organizations and cycling clubs across Africa who might be interested to undertake future, similar inclusive cycling events.  

Are you a cyclist?  We are looking for 50-100 cyclists of all types, both from the African continent and further afield, who want to experience the beauty of Botswana by bike, and the power of cooperation between two wheel and hand cyclists.