Community projects in South Africa
| country: | South Africa |
| departures: | Tailormade departures available throughout the year |
| price: | From £1295 (4 weeks) excluding flights. We can offer advice on flights from the UK. Over 21s only for this project. |
| vouchers: | Gift vouchers can be used with this holiday |
read 1 travellers review
the amazing things you'll be doing
We place skilled volunteers to work with not instead of local people. Your skills will be matched to specific needs. This project is not suitable for under 21s. Please apply at least 4 months before you wish to volunteer.
We need:practical - DIY and construction, catering, arts and crafts business - basic administration and office skills, micro-enterprise set up marketing and promotion - helping local craftspeople to access tourist markets IT, desk top publishing education - training and capacity-building for teachers, TEFL for children and adults, IT, maths, basic literacy and numeracy
The Ndebele village of Mapoch is very rural with few local jobs.
Victims of apartheid policies, they were forcibly removed from their land and “dumped” in an area with no employment and no infra structure. Volunteers already placed here, have set up a bicycle repair business for the community, taught mechanics, built latrines, taught fencing techniques and laid fencing, taught IT to educators and the community, helped with marketing ideas, done basic hospitality training and trained a pre school teacher. Your skills will be matched to community need. The comfortable village lodge and nearby conference centre were built with grant-aid but local people lack the management and marketing skills to make good use of these potential money-earners.
The village lodge and conference centre, if better-used, can increase incomes and create work. There are 8 twin-bedded rooms in the lodge, each with its own ensuite bathroom and shower, and this is where volunteers will stay while working in the project.
We need:
The Ndebele village of Mapoch is very rural with few local jobs.
Victims of apartheid policies, they were forcibly removed from their land and “dumped” in an area with no employment and no infra structure. Volunteers already placed here, have set up a bicycle repair business for the community, taught mechanics, built latrines, taught fencing techniques and laid fencing, taught IT to educators and the community, helped with marketing ideas, done basic hospitality training and trained a pre school teacher. Your skills will be matched to community need. The comfortable village lodge and nearby conference centre were built with grant-aid but local people lack the management and marketing skills to make good use of these potential money-earners.
The village lodge and conference centre, if better-used, can increase incomes and create work. There are 8 twin-bedded rooms in the lodge, each with its own ensuite bathroom and shower, and this is where volunteers will stay while working in the project.
travellers' tales
On my last day in the village where I had been with children developing a bike track and teaching them to cycle, we had a special Olympics race day! About 100 of the locals turned up to compete! (more)
skilled volunteers wanted!
This operator arranges career breaks for skilled volunteers. It is unlikely that we will be able to place volunteers without specific transferrable skills. This project is not suitable for under 21s. We place skilled volunteers to work with not instead of local people. Your skills will be matched to specific needs. Please apply at least 4 months before you wish to volunteer. Highly Commended
This tourism business was Highly Commended in our 2007 Virgin Holidays Responsible Tourism Awards - the largest awards of their kind in the world, and organised by responsibletravel.com in association with The Times, World Travel Market and Geographical Magazine, of the Royal Geographical Society.Since 2004, the Awards has recognised individuals, companies and organisations in travel making a big commitment to the culture and economies of local communities and helping to conserve biodiversity.
how this holiday makes a difference
|
Previous volunteers to this community have established a bicycle project, providing employment and transportation the community– trained staff in the community lodge, introduced computers and trained teachers and community members how to use them and pass on that knowledge, built a pre school, trained the pre school teachers therefore enabling more women to take up employment opportunities. Volunteers stay in the community guesthouse generating further income for the community.
 Pastor Peter a village elder says “All of a sudden in our lives came white people who really cared about the welfare of our people. Because of the people that have been coming into our lives, our people have been encouraged to develop their natural skills and acquire new skills. We have been encouraged by some of the people who have been coming to us, to use the resources we have to alleviate poverty. The building of the pre-school and day care in our community has helped a lot of parents concentrate on more important issues than baby sitting and has given the kids a head start in education. The bicycle project is something else all together. People are for the first time aware how disadvantaged they were transport wise. With bicycles they can now afford to visit, shop and travel to those places that were out of reach to them. Some are already thinking of running businesses with their bikes delivering bread, milk and meat. Parents are inquiring about how they can get hold of bikes for their kids because the kids want bikes to get to school. With people like this coming into our communities, we can only benefit more, as they will be imparting very valuable knowledge and passing on scarce skills.” As a volunteer you will work with, not instead of, local people and Your skills will be matched to their needs. You will know exactly where and how your money is used and your work will be part of a sustainable programme. We will ensure that volunteer placements are beneficial, not exploitative. Our priority is to match community needs with volunteer skills and we will ensure that local people will not subsidise volunteers. Our relationship is long-term and sustainable, rewarding, challenging and safe experiences for volunteers and local people alike, where at least 80% of volunteers' funds are spent in the host country. |
Tourism can be good and bad for destinations & local people. We carefully screen every holiday against our criteria for responsible travel. 'Look behind the brochure' to find how each holiday makes a difference (see left). We don't claim to be perfect - there is no global accreditation - but we've led the way since 2001 and screened 1000's of holidays. We invite every traveller to write a review about their experiences and responsible tourism. This valuable feedback is sent to the people who run the holidays. We keep a very close eye on it and take off holidays that don't live up to our standards. |