Volunteer in Tanzania

  Tanzania

Rural Areas

Duration of Program: 1-2 weeks
Typical Duration of Program: 1-2 weeks

Description: Tanzania is well-known throughout Africa for its peaceful conditions and friendly citizens. Its distinctive, geographical beauty (Serengeti Plain & Mt. Kilimanjaro) and natural preserves (African plant and wildlife) make Tanzania a frequent destination for visitors on safari. Unfortunately, Tanzania is also one of the poorest nations of Africa. Volunteers to the mountainous Karagwe area of the country will find themselves in a remote town where the majority of people are farmers subsisting on less than $100 a year. The AIDS epidemic, malaria, and other health crises have significantly hindered the well-being of this vibrant community.

Amizade volunteers serve side-by-side with an impressive team of community organizers, caseworkers, hospital staff, and church members on projects dedicated to improving peoples lives. During their stay, volunteers will serve with of one of three dynamic community organizations in the area. Volunteers will have a wide variety of opportunities to explore modern issues of development including water quality, reproductive health, HIV/AIDS programs, and womens rights.

Our partners in Tanzania include:
Family Alliance for Development & Cooperation (FADECO):
This grassroots community organization focuses on empowering local community members to support themselves economically, increase nutrition and preventative health, & provide educational technology and resources that will lead to community-driven plans for sustainability. Located in the rural Kagera District just beyond the energy grid, this organization has helped:
* bring the first radio station and the Internet to their region
* designed a solar food preservation system
* implemented rain water harvesting,
* and continuously educates the local community
* FADECO and Fair Trade (article)

Women Emancipation & Development Agency (WOMEDA):
This women's organization focuses on increasing economic and human rights by supporting members of the community through legal procedures and training programs. WOMEDA
* provides free legal and educational services for women and children in Tanzania
* Promotes gender equality through workshops on womens and children's rights, political leadership, and legal literacy.
* Provides counseling services to families, and works with community members to ensure children's rights.

Past volunteers have done qualitative and quantitative research for WOMEDA that enabled them to receive grant funding. FADECO and WOMEDA have also worked together through Amizade to provide rain water harvesting systems to families identified by the community to be in the greatest in need.

Evangelical Lutheran Church of Tanzania (ELCT) - Amizade volunteers work with the Lutheran Church in their efforts to construct a transitional children's home. The vision for the transitional home is to provide a center where children could stay while waiting to be placed in foster care and to provide education and training for the children. The facility will be staffed and administered by the Nyakahanga Hospital. The Lutheran Church also partners with the hospital to administer a number of vital community health initiatives, including an AIDS Control office. Amizade volunteers can be placed at the Nyakahanga Hospital to complete community service focused in medicine and health.

In addition to service, volunteers will hear speakers from local organizations, visit local mosques and churches, and see performances of the ngoma a native dancing group of women and children. Volunteers will visit schools in the area, hear talks from local farmers, watch or play soccer, and interact daily with the hospital and local community. Often, Amizade volunteers are invited to cultural events such as church meetings and community celebrations.

Highlights: Tanzania will stimulate you on all levels. The beauty and warmth of its people, pleasant climate, and rich culture will constantly amaze you. The country is known throughout East Africa for having years of peaceful conditions often credited to the unifying national language of Swahili. A typical day volunteering in Tanzania might include a breakfast of locally-grown fresh fruit, a pleasant walk to your volunteer site alongside the banana fields, work on your service project, meeting and conversing with other volunteers and community members, dinner followed by a presentation from local subsistence farmers.

Qualifications: none

Cost in US$: $797 - $1581

Salary / Pay: none

Experience Required: no

Typical Volunteer: Someone who is enthusiastic, willing to learn about another culture and serve a needy community.

Age Range: high school-college

This Program is open to Worldwide Participants. This Program is also open to Families, Couples and Individuals

Participants Travel to Tanzania Independently

Typically Participants Work in Groups of 6-15

Application Process Involves:

• Other
• Physical Exam/Health Records
• Written Application

Post Services Include:

• Alumni Network

Amizade Global Service-Learning and Volunteer Programs's Mission Statement: Amizade inspires individuals and communities through worldwide service and learning.

Year Founded: 1994