Arabic version: داستي لانغبي يخطط للمشي 500 كيلومتر دعماً لرعاية الأطفال في المناطق الريفية

According to ABC News, 12-year-old Dusty Langby plans to walk 500 kilometres from Warren in western New South Wales to Parliament House in Canberra to support paediatric care for children in rural communities. He has secured a meeting with Prime Minister Anthony Albanese when he arrives.

Dusty will begin the 16-day trek on August 30 and hopes to reach Canberra on September 14. He expects to walk up to 40 kilometres a day through the central west of NSW. Training has been under way since January, and he has worn through four pairs of shoes.

He is aiming to raise $1 million for Little Wings, a children’s charity that provides free flights to Sydney for rural children needing specialist appointments. The organisation also flies paediatricians to regional communities, including Warren, for monthly visits. Dusty said he would ask the prime minister to match the amount raised when he reaches parliament.

Dusty has raised $100,000 so far, an amount Little Wings said could fund a doctor’s travel to five rural communities for a year. His mother, Sarah Langby, said the fundraising was nearly enough to give 400 children access they otherwise would not have had.

Dusty and his brother have both been flown from Warren to Sydney by Little Wings for specialist medical appointments. He will be joined on the walk by Little Wings chief executive Clare Pearson, local nurse Christine Letton and Little Wings nurse Nichole Callan. The charity currently provides fly-in-fly-out paediatric services in Warren, Dubbo, Nyngan, Gilgandra and Lake Cargelligo, while 12 communities remain on a waiting list for clinics.