Africa Calling
It is becoming increasingly popular for school-leavers or students to take “time out”, to experience a different country, meet different people, enjoy new experiences, and at the same time make a meaningful contribution to the host country.
Africa Calling has emerged as South Africa’s premier volunteer working projects and gap year specialists. Our portfolio of high quality volunteer projects and training courses, have been skilfully designed to ensure that volunteers interact on a daily basis with the surrounding environment and people. In addition to our world-class volunteer projects, we specialize in overland tours, private tours, Baz-bus agents, and any other travel requirements for Africa.
The fact that Africa Calling has representatives in South Africa, allows them to actively assist in the smooth-running of all of the projects and thereby assuring clients of the most memorable holiday.
Years of experience (and hundreds of happy customers), have assisted the organisation in cultivating and developing a group of well managed, fun and challenging tours and services (volunteer projects, wildlife training courses, overland tours and tailor made packages). There is a tour to suit all needs, and the friendly, efficient staff will assist you in selecting the product best suited to your personal needs. Not only will they recommend the best holiday option for you, but they will assist you in planning your entire holiday to South Africa, advising you on accommodation, transfers, fun activities, visas, vaccinations and other valuable information.
Africa Calling will ensure that no longer is Africa the “dark continent”, but rather a place where one can lose one’s soul to timeless magnificence. A continent of beauty, surprises and a whole new world of opportunities awaits the intrepid traveller.
Member since: 27 Jan 2005
How the minimum criteria of the responsible travel standard was met...
Economic responsibility
- All the projects run by Africa Calling Tourism Brokers CC employ guides from the local communities and wherever possible we will be using local entrepreneurs for aspects such as transport facilities and shops. As I am sure you are aware, many small companies do not have the infrastructure to operate smoothly and efficiently. As a tour operator I wish to give my guests the best possible holiday available. Unfortunately there are some areas where we will not be able to use local businesses however, wherever possible we will be using local businesses and will be creating job opportunities for the local communities.
- The only way in which a volunteer project will run smoothly is when the community sees and understands the benefits that they are either directly or indirectly receiving. A good example of this is at our Community development project. The volunteers will be utilising many resources to educate the community about economic and social problems faced by the community and ways I which this can be overcome. They will also be assisting in establishing sustainable community gardens and erecting houses for the aged. Many life skills will also be taught to the people of the communities such as computer skills, basic hygiene and after school sports for the children.
- As well as all the projects receiving the labour that the volunteers will be offering I will be paying the projects. A large percentage of our turnover will be filtered back into the community that will enable them to build schools or clinics in the area.
Environmental responsibility
- Africa Calling Tourism Brokers partake in many office based initiatives the most prominent being paper recycling and reusing. All of our clients will be briefed about the project as mentioned above. Wise water and electricity use will be included in their orientation. The joy about a volunteer working program is that the volunteers will be working directly with the environment and will notice the importance of water. (By the way there are very bad droughts in South Africa at the moment) This raised awareness of water usage will be taken by the volunteers into the communities where currently there is no running water. Enabling a community to have access to running water is the focus of one of my projects situated in a world heritage site!
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Whilst the volunteers are working on their project they will be taken on various environmental and community based awareness trips. Trips to a local cultural village or local art gallery are some of the things they will be doing. On the environmental side of thing they will be doing a lot of extensive work such as clearing out invader species of plants or more luxurious activities such as monitoring the turtle breeding on the East Coast of South Africa.
Social responsibility
- As mentioned earlier all the volunteers will receive an extensive orientation where all aspects of the community will be discussed as well as a brief introduction into the culture of the local people, hopefully giving them more understanding of the people they are going to be working with. A local guide will be accompanying them on all their trips into the community. This will help in making sure that the volunteers do not do anything that may offend the local community. A good example is in the Zulu culture men come first and always sit on the right hand side of the building or enclosure. This is so different from our Western Culture that people may not understand this and therefore not undertake these practises that are an integral part of the culture. A guide will ensure that volunteers do not upset the local community due to lack of knowledge of unfamiliar culture.
- Another benefit of having a guide is for the safety of the volunteers, which is always a concern. A guide will know the area and will only take the volunteers where it is safe. This is very important as volunteers will not know the bad area in a community and may wander into some trouble which we certainly do not wish to happen to anybody
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- As mentioned earlier volunteers will be visiting projects run by the local community and will be buying curios for their family and friends. If there is a curio project in the area the volunteers will be going here therefore generating more money for the community. Some of the camps where the volunteers will be staying are actually owned and run by the local community, thus this is more income for the community.
