Three years ago, our co-founder Ray made a donation to Zam Zam, a humanitarian organization dedicated to bringing clean water, education, and sustainable agriculture to underprivileged communities around the world. With a shared passion for eradicating poverty and helping others, a beautiful friendship was formed. After the opening of our first school in the Bugesera district of Rwanda later that year, Paxful’s Built With Bitcoin initiative was officially launched. Serving over 7,500 people, the building consists of three classrooms, four restrooms with potable irrigation systems, and a 15,000-liter water tank.

Last year, we continued our efforts by opening another school in Kigali, Rwanda, complete with a cafeteria, 35,000-liter water well, solar panels, and many other resources for both students and faculty. In a building nearly twice the size of the first one, there are six classrooms and six full-time teachers that educate more than 300 primary school children between the ages of 6 and 15.

In the present, Built With Bitcoin is moving forward with even greater momentum. Even amidst a global pandemic, we’ve managed to make progress on our current projects with the help of our amazing partners. So, what exactly are we up to? Here’s a quick rundown of what’s been going on and what you can expect from BWB in 2020.

Building Schools in Kenya

Our third school in Kenya

Education has been and will always be important to us, which is why it’s become such an essential building block of both our platform and mission. Built With Bitcoin’s third project is nearing its completion in Machakos County, Kenya. Designed to be an early education center for children aged 3 to 6, students and staff will have access to three classrooms, six bathrooms, a kitchen, and a teacher’s office.

The foundation has been set and our dedicated team just recently secured all the doors and windows. We’re happy to say that the school is still on track to open this year.

Africa Fund for COVID-19

Africa Fund for COVID-19

Earlier this year, the world was hit with the pandemic known as COVID-19. With many African countries declaring a state of emergency, Paxful was moved to take action once again. Working with Shining Hope for Communities, GROW Educare Centres, and Zam Zam Water, Built With Bitcoin made a donation of $5,000 and matched any donations made up to another $5,000 in Bitcoin. With generous contributions from our users and friends, we were able to provide aid and essential supplies like food, hand sanitizer, and other protective equipment.

Water filtration system in Nigeria

Water filtration centers

For many impoverished communities around the world, access to clean water is essential to maintaining health and sustainable farming. By supplying water, we’re not only providing safe drinking water but also a way for people to wash their hands and avoid becoming ill.

Currently, we’re working on two water filtration centers—a 150-liter one in Kenya and a 220-liter one in Rwanda. They’re nearly finished and we can’t wait to see how the communities there continue to thrive using them.

Building schools in Nigeria

School number four in Nigeria

In the next stage of our goal to build 100 schools around the world, we’ve broken ground on a fourth school in Kaduna State, Nigeria. Situated in Ankara Nandu Village, this building will serve as an early education center for 120 students aged 3 to 6 and house 3 classrooms. In addition, there will be 8 bathrooms, a water well, a reservoir, a conference room, and plenty of space for storage.

With the ground leveled for building, we’ve recently laid out the foundation for the structure. The tank reservoir has also been installed and the team out there has already finished the digging for the well. The Paxful family and Built With Bitcoin team could not be more excited as we move into the next phase of construction. Be sure to keep an eye out for progress updates and news on opening.

School foundation

96 to go

Thanks to Zam Zam, all of our committed partners, and you, we’re slowly but surely creating real, sustainable change in people’s lives. Though we’ve made incredible progress, our work is far from over. We still have 96 more schools and water facilities to start building. We hope you’ll partner with us in bringing Ray and Artur’s vision to life and help change the world one Bitcoin at a time.