Volunteer in Africa – Why choose us?
We know our projects and will take the time to get to know you, so that we may make the best use of your skills, or experience and you may achieve the greatest value possible during your time volunteering.
There are two main and very important considerations for us; you and the projects that we support. Volunteering is a very rewarding and potentially life changing experience and can also be a lot of fun. You will meet new people, experience other cultures, and may discover a confidence, or skills that you did not realise you had. We have seen so many volunteers leave projects completely different people to when they arrived, or with a new outlook on life and this is something that we put value upon.
Hopefully you are reading this website because you share our objective of making a difference in some way. By volunteering in Africa with us you become part of our community and an ambassador for our projects, so our contact with you does not stop once you have booked and your involvement need not stop when you get home. We encourage you to keep in touch, to share your experiences with others and similarly we will keep you updated with developments at the projects. In this way you can continue to play a part in the success of the projects and can see the collective achievements of you and other volunteers, which is something you can be proud of.
All projects have a local management team
The local organsiations we support, or individuals that run our volunteer projects are there to help you and most importantly they understand the needs and culture of the communities where you will be based. This means that the projects themselves directly benefit local initiatives, or provide employment.
All projects are needs as opposed to demand driven
In other words they were not set up simply to give you something to do, but your help will be genuinely welcome and required. All of our projects have strong sustainability objectives. This means that we aim not to create a dependence on the indefinite provision of aid, or donations, but to help people and communities achieve self-sufficiency wherever possible.
Low volunteer project prices
We aim to keep the fee that you pay to volunteer as low as possible whilst still ensuring acceptable levels of comfort are achieved and without compromising on safety. This in effect means that a relatively small proportion is being spent on our operational and marketing costs and more is going overseas where it should be.
Transparency about how we spend your money
We are happy to be open about where your money goes, as we believe that the proportion we use to ensure that our partner organisations and you receive a good level of service and support is very reasonable. At least 70% of your money is paid to our project partner in-country, which we are confident is high compared with other companies and we are willing to be specific about your chosen project.
Safety and Support
Your safety and well-being is our priority. We provide detailed information to prepare you for your project, 24/7 support from experienced project staff in-country and an emergency contact in the UK. All projects have been assessed and measures put in place to minimise any risks involved. We simply ask that you listen to our advice and respect the project guidelines.
You will not be taking local jobs
You will be volunteering in areas where there is a lack of skill, or knowledge locally. In specific cases, such as building a vocational training centre, or distributing mosquito nets, the work that you will be doing may rely to an extent on the funding that you provide as part of your fee. However, you will be assisting in the work on these projects under the supervision, or management of locals, such as a site foreman, therefore creating additional employment.
Naturally Africa Foundation
We have established a charitable trust to raise funds for specific projects through financial donations. Whilst the primary focus of the volunteer programmes is to impart skills and knowledge, the projects also have additional funding requirements, in order to develop and successfully achieve their objectives.