Tanzania school building project
| country: | Tanzania |
| departures: | 2009: 22 Aug, 3 Oct |
| price: | From £595 + £3015 sponsorship (9 days) including flights from the UK. Self funder: £595 deposit + £1355 balance + £500 minumum sponsorship. This trip can also be booked without flights |
| vouchers: | Gift vouchers can be used with this holiday |
the amazing things you'll be doing
Helping to build schools and other important community buildings alongside local people is a unique experience that opens your eyes to the plight of others who do not have the basic, simple amenities that most of us take for granted.
Every child in Tanzania aged 7-13 years old has the basic right to primary school education. Since 1974 the Government of Tanzania has endeavoured to make primary education compulsory and has tried to implement this by working with Central and Local Governments as well as local communities to increase the number of schools available to pupils. On a positive note the number of schools has increased and there has been a similar rise in pupil enrolment, however, this rise in enrolment has resulted in schools being seriously overcrowded and under equipped.
We are looking for volunteers to put their heart and ‘sweat’ into what we believe will be one of the most rewarding experiences we can offer - a helping hand to provide primary education in a remote Maasai community. Have you ever dreamt of travelling to another country and connecting with people from different cultures? Do you want to wake up each morning knowing that by the end of each day, you will have – through your own efforts, helped a village bring education to its children?
A community challenge provides an exciting opportunity for individuals to travel and work closely with people of another culture and to help make a real difference to their lives. It is both a physical and emotional experience, and volunteers often come away from participating in a community challenge with a greater understanding of poverty and the effect AIDS can have on family life. Most of all, they begin to have a greater understanding of themselves and their value system, than they did beforehand.
All it takes to participate in the Tanzania community challenge is a desire to make a difference, enthusiasm and the passion to change the future for those children whose new classrooms you will be building. No other skills are required, as there will be others there to show you what to do.
Every child in Tanzania aged 7-13 years old has the basic right to primary school education. Since 1974 the Government of Tanzania has endeavoured to make primary education compulsory and has tried to implement this by working with Central and Local Governments as well as local communities to increase the number of schools available to pupils. On a positive note the number of schools has increased and there has been a similar rise in pupil enrolment, however, this rise in enrolment has resulted in schools being seriously overcrowded and under equipped.
We are looking for volunteers to put their heart and ‘sweat’ into what we believe will be one of the most rewarding experiences we can offer - a helping hand to provide primary education in a remote Maasai community. Have you ever dreamt of travelling to another country and connecting with people from different cultures? Do you want to wake up each morning knowing that by the end of each day, you will have – through your own efforts, helped a village bring education to its children?
A community challenge provides an exciting opportunity for individuals to travel and work closely with people of another culture and to help make a real difference to their lives. It is both a physical and emotional experience, and volunteers often come away from participating in a community challenge with a greater understanding of poverty and the effect AIDS can have on family life. Most of all, they begin to have a greater understanding of themselves and their value system, than they did beforehand. All it takes to participate in the Tanzania community challenge is a desire to make a difference, enthusiasm and the passion to change the future for those children whose new classrooms you will be building. No other skills are required, as there will be others there to show you what to do.
day-by-day itinerary
| Day 1: | International departure. Our representative will be at the airport to assist you with the check-in and any last minute questions. |
| Day 2: | Arrival in Tanzania. You will land in Nairobi early morning and catch your connection to Kilimanjaro, Tanzania where a representative will meet you for a briefing session. Then commence the drive west across the floor of the Rift Valley towards Gelai Village. A picnic lunch will be provided en route and on arrival at Gelai there will be the chance to relax, get used to a life of camping, and then enjoy a candle-lit dinner under the justly celebrated African star canopy. |
| Day 3-6: | Building the new classrooms for Gelai primary school. Every morning, breakfast will be served from 6:30am and we should be ready on site to commence work at 8am. You will be fully briefed on site at the beginning of each working day on the challenge and all safety and training aspects will be covered. Equally important is the introduction to the villagers you will be working alongside. This is a great opportunity to get acquainted with your new environment. Over the next four and a half days your challenge will involve building two classrooms, working in teams made up of fellow participants. Many teams are also joined by local people whose community you are helping to rebuild. You will not be able to complete the entire building project but you will see real progress as you work alongside the Maasai. Once the exterior of the classroom nears completion efforts focus on finishing the interior. The days will be scheduled around the local working hours and appropriate temperatures throughout the day. Lunch, water & snacks will be provided on site and shared with all members of the building team. In the evenings you will have the chance to eat and relax and maybe take a walk with the Maasai into the bush. |
| Day 7: | Finish work, celebration lunch, depart for Engaruka. This morning you will finish your tasks and clear the site ready for the next building phase. Then a very special lunch will be arranged so that you can say “goodbye” formally to your Maasai hosts. This occasion will be marked by speeches and Maasai tribal song and dance. In the early afternoon you must depart so as to reach Engaruka before night fall. This is a long, bumpy and often dusty 4x4 safari. Your camp near Engaruka is set below the escarpment of the Rift Valley and the scenery remains spectacular. |
| Day 8: | Manyara Safari. Depart for UK. This morning you will leave camp early in order to reach Manyara National Park in good time. A driven safari in this small but fascinating park will also include a picnic lunch. This is a beautiful park and the blend of woodland, water and clearings make game viewing and safaris particularly interesting. Lake Manyara is one of the Rift Valley Lakes, and a region famous for its tree-climbing lions as well as being a bird watcher's paradise with more than 380 recorded. In addition to the pelicans, cormorants and flamingos, all manner of ducks, herons geese, stocks, grebes, ibises and kingfishers can be seen along the lake edge. In the afternoon drive to Arusha and then continue to Kilimanjaro Airport catch your evening connecting flight to Nairobi with onward connections to London Heathrow. |
| Day 9: | Arrive UK. Arrive back at London Heathrow at 7am (approx). |
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
 Community Projects Africa is a small charity working in Tanzania. Currently the charity is addressing an urgent need for projects to provide educational support such as school buildings and other infrastructure both primary and secondary, vocational training, medical care, and safe water. The Gelai primary school build project goal: Build two new classrooms for this overstretched Masai primary school. The charity has visited the project and consulted with the school and village elders. They require a volunteer building group to start work there in October this year. We urgently need more supporters to join the group. The teams will help with building work and raise funds, which will go towards materials and paying local crafts-people to help with the construction of the new buildings. Every child in Tanzania aged 7-13 years has the basic right to primary school education. Since 1974 the Government of Tanzania has endeavored to make primary education compulsory and has tried to implement this by working with Central and Local Governments as well as local communities to increase the number of schools available to pupils. On a positive note the number of schools has increased and there has been a similar rise in pupil enrolment, however, this rise in enrolment has resulted in schools being seriously overcrowded and under equipped. Your efforts will help to provide desperately needed facilities for the very overstretched Gelai primary school and improve the quality of education for the local children. The location is one of the attractions of this challenge – in remote and beautiful country, where Masai tend their herds and zebra and giraffe graze on savannah grasslands with volcanoes and the Rift Valley escarpment as a magical backdrop. |
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