"Our welcome by the local people was so warm and genuine. I realised immediately that these people were going to inspire me despite their poverty and hardship. " - Jenny
98% of PoD volunteers rate their experience as good or very good!
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Charity Summer Camp - Tanzania
| Location | Villages of Yamba and Milingano |
| Dates | 2012: 3rd August 2013: 26th July Applications should be received at least 4 months before the start date to allow time to apply for visas |
| Duration | 2 weeks |
| Availability |
Spaces available |
| Cost |
£795 |
| Discounts |
£50 per person for friends / partner |
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Experience life in a beautiful rural community
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Teach English, sports and help with the building projects
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Be part of the an ongoing development project
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Support the charity 'Village Africa'
Project details
Introduction
Join a team to run a 2 week charity development camp to rural villages in Tanzania. The villages are located in a remote and poor, but very friendly and beautiful location. Volunteers work with a small charity called Village Africa.
For the 2 weeks you will get involved in a mix of volunteering and other activities and will be fully immersed in village life.
Read what past volunteers have said about this project in our Tanzania charity summer camp volunteer reviews.
How you will spend the 2 weeks
You will be based in the village of Yamba and during your first few days you'll be constantly amazed by the people and place that you will call home for the next two weeks.
We'll give you guidance, training and support to help you settle in and then as quickly as possible you'll get straight into the activities:
Volunteering activities:
- Visit to local school for cultural exchange
- Sports day
- Football and games
- After school tuition
- Reading and writing with the children
- Art and crafts with the children
- Building projects - getting involved with classroom, house and toilet building depending on the needs at the time
- Maintenance on the mountain road to Yamba
- Farming
Other activities:
- Yamba and Milingano tour
- Visit to local home and farm
- Kiswahili and Kisambaa lessons
- Hiking to Kenya viewpoint, Milingano viewpoint, caves
- Church visit, choir practice
- Cooking
- Fetching water and washing clothes in river
The location
The villages are located in the Usambaras, in the North East of Tanzania and form part of the Eastern Arc Mountains. Each village is quite different even though they are located nearby. Milingano is perhaps how most people imagine an African village, fairly dry and hot with the classic African red earth. Yamba, being located much higher up is colder, lush and green, with stunning views of the surrounding area.
A huge part of the adventure of Tanzania is the environment you will live and work in. The villages are in an extremely beautiful area with a mixture of forest and farmland. There is a lot of wildlife including dikdiks, rabbits, chameleons and birds. The people who live here are subsistence farmers but despite the land being fertile, they are incredibly poor.
Tanzania is one of the poorest countries in the world and as such the standard of living appears very low to us. The Tanzanian way of life is extremely laid back, relaxed and friendly. Society is generally not driven by money and provides a very different view on how to live. This can lead to a degree of culture shock for people visiting, but more often leads to culture shock on the return home after spending an extended period of time living in a local environment. Longer term this can help to produce a much deeper and more mature understanding of our own society and a more tolerant and caring view of other people and societies.
How you can make a difference
You will be helping some of the poorest people in the world and supporting the amazing work that Village Africa is doing.
What's included
- A comprehensive information booklet and pre-departure support
- Travel advice and assistance
- Pick up and drop off at Tanga
- Transfer to the village
- Local introductions and training
- Accommodation (shared room) for 14 nights
- Ongoing support, help and advice from our local team
What else to budget for
The following items are not included and estimates are given as a guide for your budgeting: flights to Dar es Salaam (£450-£600), visa (£388), travel insurance, personal spending (£55-£60 per week).
More details
About the charity Village Africa
Village Africa is a UK registered Charity committed to the alleviation of poverty, focussing on education and healthcare in Tanzania. In the local dialect its name is 'Vyaadahikana' which means 'it can be done'!
Click here to visit Village Africa's own website and learn more about the charity and the amazing work it is doing.
Support and induction
Andy is the volunteer manager; he is the first point of call for you and he and the local team will be there to support you throughout your time at the project.
During your first couple of days you will receive introductions, tours and training. This includes the project background, cultural awareness and health & safety.
Other volunteers
There are usually between 3 and 12 volunteers at the project at any one time. Volunteers vary in age from 18 to 75 years old.
Accommodation and food
You will live together in simple but comfortable houses in the village, with a short walk to the Village Africa office. A house-girl is employed to fetch water, shop, cook and clean and a watchman is employed to oversee the houses at night.
Free time and travel opportunities
You will soon adapt to the Tanzanian way of life that is dictated by the hours of daylight. With the absence of electricity, waking hours become fairly similar to daylight hours.
During your stay you will have time to get to know the local communities and you can use your time off to explore the local area. There are some great local hiking opportunities including viewpoints of Kilimanjaro and the Tanzania/Kenya border, waterfalls and historical caves.
If possible, we highly recommend adding an extra week on to your stay to go on safari in some of the most outstanding national parks in the world, or explore the stunning spice island of Zanzibar.
Challenges
This is a remote and challenging environment with no running water and electricity; so if you are looking for a luxurious 2 weeks this may not be for you!
Although this is a summer project from the UK, the climate in Tanzania at this time can be cold and you may experience rain.
As this is a 2 week project we pack a lot in to a short period of time; so be prepared to work hard and have a lot of fun! You should be willing to work within a team and be adaptable to living and working in a group. Don't forget that the work you'll do in these two weeks is part of a much bigger picture of ongoing support and development that we are providing to this community.
Where your money goes and the PoD Charity
PoD is run as a non-profit organisation and does not receive any external funding. We charge a fee for all our placements to cover the overseas costs of volunteering and the costs of running our organisation in the UK. Fee levels are set to match costs (on a non-profit basis) and any surplus monies are distributed to the overseas organisations and charities we work with via the PoD Charity.
For over 10 years PoD has been providing volunteers to help charitable projects around the world. The PoD Charity was established in 2010 to build on this success by also providing financial assistance. Find out more and get involved in fundraising for this project through the PoD Charity.
PoD UK Manager
Gemma in the PoD UK team looks after this project so if you apply you will hear from her soon!
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