These are in-depth Q&A sessions with program leaders. Naturally Africa Volunteers 13 Overview Reviews Top projects Gallery Overview Naturally Africa Volunteers makes a sustainable contribution to communities across Africa through education, medical and healthcare, sports and conservation projects. This means that the projects themselves directly benefit local initiatives, or provide employment. There are many reasons to volunteer in Africa: to make a positive impact, to help protect wildlife, to have the opportunity to travel around beautiful countries before or after your volunteer trip, to experience rich and welcoming cultures different than your own, to enjoy a slower lifestyle, and to stand out during a future job search. If not, these skills will be useful in a hopeful future diversifying of the Malawian economy away from agriculture. An Overview and Tips for International Travelers, 200 Volunteer Abroad & Study Abroad Scholarships & Grants, How Volunteering Abroad as a Couple Can Improve Your Relationship, Show It was truly special to meet the wonderful children and teachers and to help them to learn in a more creative and exciting way and to see them all grow in confidence and self esteem, with all the children enjoying the activities and being engaged in their learning. Gender bias. 8 Impactful Volunteer Opportunities in Kenya | GoAbroad.com Hopefully you are reading this website because you share our objective of making a difference in some way. Yes, some areas aren't safe, but others are debatably safer than home. Naturally Africa Volunteers | Volunteer Forever Naturally Africa Volunteers provides opportunities for skilled and non-skilled volunteers to help make a difference in Africa. The accommodation itself had everything we needed - 3 meals a day provided, beds with mosquito nets, bathrooms with showers (cold showers but it's so hot in Malawi it doesn't matter), buckets and a clothesline, board games, wi-fi (requiring extra cost, I for the most part used internet from a locally purchased data sim as it was cheaper), and even an adorable cat and couple dogs. Zikomo, Malawi and Naturally Africa (Enjoy your time in Malawi ! I am a 56 year lady from New Zealand. They also have wonderful characters and sense of humours. All of our projects have strong sustainability objectives. Notice: Our website and its third party tools use cookies to manage and track usage to enable us to deliver the best possible service and customer expectation. | how to start trading forex in south africa, How much do Bolt drivers earn? Most times this means working with small-scale artisans or agriculture, organizing micro-finance loans, or running workshops that give entrepreneurs the skills necessary to make the most of their ventures. Naturally Africa Volunteers provides opportunities for skilled and non-skilled volunteers to help make a difference in Africa. While getting poked in the arm with a needle isnt fun, yellow fever is worse. Volunteer World is the World's leading comparison platform for volunteer abroad programs. The thing I will remember most about my experience in Malawi will be the people. Visit the Naturally Africa Volunteers website to find out more about volunteering with us. Apply | Volunteer Africa Teaching volunteers help by assisting local teachers with large class numbers. . The schools have very limited resources and help is often required. I have gained so much confidence in demonstration and talking to people from different backgrounds. Glassdoor gives you an inside look at what it's like to work at Naturally Africa Volunteers, including salaries, reviews, office photos, and more. Kenya Community Outreach Volunteers 10. Sign up to hear about new projects abroad, and for a chance to win our exclusive $500 and $1000 scholarships! Volunteer with us to play a vital role in the success of these projects and have the experience of a lifetime whilst helping to make a difference. This experience included an understanding of what was important to volunteers and areas such as customer service, risk assessment and management. According to the United Nations, there are 54 countries on the African continent. We believe in transparency about where your money goes. Donations received support a small network of locally operated sustainable development projects. ), I took part in the medical volunteer project for 4 weeks from May to June. We also loved being a part of the Nkope community- everyone was so friendly and welcoming and we even learnt a bit or Chichewa (their local language). - Wednesday: Wound care clinic in the morning followed by a medical education session with a community group of HIV sufferers. During the years we have spent working closely with the people we support we have improved life for many different areas of the community. Overall if you are a first time volunteer or even a veteran volunteer, this program is a wonderful opportunity to see a new country while making your own positive impact on the area. On top of this, political corruption and a shortage of motivated teachers have added to the need for education reforms and volunteer teachers to fill in the gaps. I volunteered with Naturally Africa Volunteers at their Lake Malawi Project with two other medical student friends in September 2018. Disadvantages of Volunteering There is a wonderful balance between volunteer work and seeing other areas and sights in Malawi which I was really thankful for as Malawi is such a beautiful country. What is the vision and mission of Naturally Africa Volunteers? Naturally Africa Volunteers - Who We Are The work they do genuinely helps the communities they serve, while ultimately working longer term to create self sufficiency. I volunteered for twelve weeks and even though some days were tough my overall experience of Nkope, Malawi and Naturally Africa is positive. Naturally Africa Volunteers now supports a small network of locally operated volunteer projects across Africa. This partnership is very much based on co-operation, trust and open communication. Originally we had planned further involvement in ward-based activities but had concerns around the practises of preventing tuberculosis transmission in the hospital (patients with query tuberculosis/pneumonia were on the open wards in a hospital lacking X-rays at the time) and had decided to restrict our involvement to activities without this risk. Outside of the cities, where the influence of the western world has not been as strong, daily life has changed slowly and many people still live in more rustic, traditional housing, and hold on to long-held customs both ritualistic and mundane. Volunteer with us to play a vital role in the success of these projects and have the experience of a lifetime whilst helping to make a difference. Africa is home to some of the poorest countries in the world but also several burgeoning metropolises, such as Cape Town and Luanda, with living costs on par with a mid-sized city in the West. 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Volunteers work alongside local people in order to jointly achieve our aims. Volunteer in Africa Why choose us? Volunteering is a very rewarding and potentially life changing experience and can also be a lot of fun. Should you put together a first aid kit? Look for a vendor that's cooking up fresh snacks instead. 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. A month later, her students in the United Kingdom responded to the letters and the students in Malawi were excited to receive them! 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. A few examples you don't want to overlook are allergy medicine, antidiarrheals, and hand sanitizer. One volunteer was enrolled in our educational project - she was teaching at Nakundu Primary School. How does the Naturally Africa Volunteers support the community? Check If you've done your research and volunteered through a reputable provider, you can rest assured that you have a reliable support system. Industrialization and modernization on a large scale is largely absent from African nations, as visitors may notice in the lack of recognizable mega-chains. However, Marc and Felicity were not ready to return to the UK immediately. Volunteer from 4 to 12 weeks or. Description. | how to get showmax on dstv. To stay in touch! They are kind, open, genuine, joyful and always welcoming. From delicate lemurs to giant whale sharks to mountain gorillas and turtles, those wishing to help preserve these animals and their landscapes can easily find volunteer positions working with wildlife on reserves, environmental conservation with marine life, or environmental education with youth. For health, malaria is an issue in much of sub-Saharan Africa and it's a good idea to get a prophylaxis before leaving home. Felt very As a solo traveler, they made this experience easy to go through and all the coordinators were available for any advice for trips and transportation. The community group sessions involved us preparing medical content of interest to the attendees and relevance of the local population e.g. If you would like to work abroad as a volunteer in Africa, youve come to the right place, as our team is experienced in matching the right people to the right projects. The focus is on establishing a community that each volunteer can become a part of and hence sharing the responsibility of achieving long-term objectives. Malawi, one of the Earth's poorest nations, faces a desperate struggle to feed its people without destroying the ecosystems it relies on, writes Marc Crouch. When it comes to meat and fish, dont eat it if its been out in an open market for long. Marc Crouch, founder and operator of Naturally Africa Volunteers, is an expert in the volunteer field with over 15 years experience helping out many different projects across Africa. We're delighted that you're ready to apply and we look forward to reviewing your application. The experience that Marc and Felicity gained on the ground was also very valuable to them personally, as it gave them an insight into the daily challenges of operating the volunteer projects and managing groups of volunteers effectively. The strategy guiding the work for The Ecologist for the years 2023 to 2026 has now been published. Lake Malawi Volunteer Projects - Medical, Teaching, Sports, Childcare, Wildlife and Conservation Projects in Africa - Become a Professional Field Guide. This means that a relatively small proportion is being spent on operational and marketing costs and more is going overseas to directly benefit local partners and projects. Between them they have over fourteen years of experience working with volunteer organisations and have visited hundreds of projects worldwide. Sign up for our WEEKLY newsletters - and never miss out on the amazing news and comment articles we publish. In the years to come, I would love to return to this beautiful community and come back as an even more knowledgeable individual. Naturally Africa Volunteers Knowledge about and access to basic health care is a problem for a large portion of the African population. The first challenge of volunteering in Africa has got to be the poor infrastructure. The charity helps fund some of the projects that our volunteers support to. Naturally Africa Volunteers provides sustainable projects to communities in Africa focusing on healthcare, education, conservation and sports. What characteristics make a volunteer successful? Naturally Africa provided me with various materials, books and equipment that had been donated for me to use when teaching. Most days all the volunteers congregated together for breakfast, lunch and dinner that were provided. There are two key priorities for us; the projects that we support and of course you. It was wonderful that she was able to bring these students from different continents together. From the centuries-old mosques, desert cities, and ancient intellectual traditions of the North; the colorful cultures and extroverted personalities of the West; to the lush jungles, wide savannas, and untainted beaches and reefs of the East, each region possesses a character distinctly its own. Our volunteer opportunities include teaching, medical care, sports coaching and wildlife conservation programmes and support the work our charity. Meet the Naturally Africa Foundation Team When volunteering in Malawi you gain a lot, you will be able to work with wonderful children, explore Malawi, make new friends with fellow volunteers and the Naturally Africa staff and gain a new perspective of your priorities. The healthcare projects Naturally Africa runs are vital to the local communities. Muslim-dominated countries in the north and west tend to be more conservative than their Christian neighbors in dress and behavior. 2:13 PLEASE SHARE - Exciting opportunity to join our team in #Malawi! Eat smart: peel it, cook it, wash it, or forget it! Amasangalala ndi Malawi ! 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. However, Marc and Felicity were not ready to return to the UK immediately. Who is the founder of the naturally Africa volunteer? I would love to help at a local school. On my first day I was met at the airport by the local coordinator of the project and guided back to the accommodation where the volunteers had waited for the new volunteers to arrive before having a shared dinner. Malaria is not only serious and miserable, but certain types can stay with you forever, so be smart and take your pills. How is the naturally Africa organization funded? However, they both felt they wanted to be a little more actively involved in helping the projects to achieve their goals and the work that was being done on the ground. Our mission is to alleviate poverty in Africa by providing or assisting in the provision of training, education, healthcare projects and the necessary support in order to enable individuals to generate a sustainable income and become self-sufficient. I started up lessons for secondary school students, many of which have never used a computer before. Although governments technically require students to attend school up through a certain age, many children drop out early or never attend either because there are no schools nearby, they cant pay fees (which are commonly required even for public schools), or due to an unexpected teenage pregnancy. Popular destinations for volunteer programs with wildlife and the environment are Kenya, Namibia, South Africa, Madagascar, Tanzania, Rwanda, and Uganda. Naturally Africa Volunteers | Volunteer Abroad 2023 You will not be taking local jobs: You will be volunteering in areas where there is a lack of skill, or knowledge locally. On two occasions I also assisted at the local medical centre with antenatal care clinics. From a young age, Promise Msampha realised her passion to work in rural communities; to help and to facilitate change. The children in the area are an absolute joy to work with and really made the trip special. After working for a number of years within volunteer travel, Marc Crouch felt the necessity to do more to help the projects that he had been sending volunteers to. His charity works in a wide-range of countries across the continent, bringing much needed relief to many struggling communities. Having completed the drive back to the UK through Central and West Africa they have put this to good use in the model that they have adopted for Naturally Africa Volunteers. Naturally Africa Volunteers was established and is run by Marc Crouch and Felicity Milligan. By this stage, we expect that you have obtained enough guidance and information from our travel advisers and website to select the right programme for you. However, I think one of the biggest factors for the company's success is having the necessary resources available and in the hands of the right people to implement the company's goals and objectives. This is also reflected in the approach that has been taken to recruiting volunteers. Naturally Africa Volunteers | Reviews and Programs Malawi is one of the poorest countries in the world, with over half of the population living below the poverty line and an average daily income of Hi everyone! follow-up of malaria management and diabetes mellitus. The accommodation in Malawi are outstanding. This is also reflected in the approach that has been taken to recruiting volunteers. Volunteer in South Africa: Big Cats, Wildlife Conservation & Teaching You will Panways Foundation with universe Destiny is a non governmental Our mission is to transform the lives of Ugandas homeless boys in the We have reached a point where it is difficult to imagine life without Organize and plan for the trees 4Life programs which include the Tell us as much as you can about your volunteer trip! The Naturally Africa Foundation . Will you be out in remote areas where you need a way to purify water? Almost across the board, family bonds are a significant part of daily life in Africa and ethnic group allegiances can be a strong part of a persons identity. The World's Largest Volunteer Abroad Comparison Platform. Felicity has a real passion for fitness and well-being and is especially committed to initiatives like the Sports Training programme as she deeply understands the relationship between the physical activity provided in team sports and the physical and mental health of the children living in these communities. The overall vibe of the village, the people (especially the children) have impacted me in more ways that I could have ever imagined. After dinner we would often play board games and plan weekend excursions. - Friday: Wound care clinic in the morning followed by an afternoon off to have a rest or perhaps start weekend excursions early. We offer a variety of volunteering opportunities, including teaching, medical, sports, and wildlife conservation and our team is experienced in matching the right people to the right programmes. It's recommended to pack oral rehydration salts, pepto-bismol (or, my personal favorite, smecta) just in case. We aim to alleviate poverty in Africa by providing or assisting in the provision of training, education, healthcare projects and the necessary support in order to enable individuals to generate a sustainable income and become self-sufficient.