Many people with disabilities are in need of wheelchairs and cannot afford to purchase them, even with social help from the government. We recently completed a project, in cooperation with the United States Peace Corps in Macedonia that provided wheelchairs to those in need in Macedonia and helped bridge this gap in governmental social service.

The idea for the project was born two years ago during a meeting between the previous Peace Corps director and the President of APD “Shpresa”, Elvat Muharemi. The commitment and cooperation of APD Shpresa and Peace Corps Macedonia brought the project to realization this past year. On July 15th, 2008, we received word that 280 wheelchairs had been shipped to Greece for our project and were ready to be brought to Macedonia. The necessary documentation was prepared and the government of Macedonia allowed the wheelchairs to be brought into the country exempt of duty fees. Logistics company Orbit handled the customs process and the wheelchairs were stored in a warehouse until the planned date to give them to members that had applied for a wheelchair.

On August 1st, 2008, we invited our members and their families, Peace Corps Macedonia and media representatives, to join us for giving out the wheelchairs. The event was very emotional for all of us; our members, along with their families were overjoyed to be able to receive the wheelchairs.


In the following months, we have dispersed wheelchairs to other organizations:Another event for giving out the wheelchairs was held in Kumanovo on September 14th. APD “Shpresa” was present, along with Peace Corps representatives. The weather was less than ideal for such an occasion and few people were able to be present to receive their wheelchairs. However, close family members were able to deliver them. The other organizations were unable to arrange an event in their cities.