Volunteer with us
Have an experience of a lifetime volunteering with the KYGN team in Kilimanjaro, Tanzania. We're not like other volunteering opportunities for two important reasons:
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1. We don't charge you to volunteer with us, all you have to do is cover your flight and expenses
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2. Our volunteers don't replace our highly trained local team, they are there to support them
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To find out more about our volunteering opportunities then read our volunteer testimonials or send us an email:
Volunteer testimonials
We've had many, many volunteers work with us over the past few years and we're incredibly grateful for their support. Here's the experience of just two of them...
My first two months in Tanzania were spent at KYGN; undoubtedly the most valuable and rewarding experience of my life so far. After a year and a half planning this trip, I was so very happy to finally meet the kids and staff that are at the heart of all KYGN's work. The combination of smiles and hugs and enthusiasm from these children is the best remedy for a sleepy mind in the early mornings of a school day; and it wasn't long before I had mastered the skill of staying upright with so many kids hanging from each arm.
The other volunteers and I spent the majority of our time giving one-on-one lessons to the kids from nursery class who were struggling to keep up with their classmates. Needless to say, this was a real challenge for someone who had no previous experience in teaching and a very limited knowledge of Swahili, but I quickly learned to improvise on these communication difficulties, figure out which learning method suited each child and do my very best to work to their strengths while improving their weaknesses. The one-on-one attention was understandably tough on the children's attention spans and we often had to stop our lessons a bit earlier than the other teachers, as the kids would tire quickly. However, the change we saw in them over two months was so rewarding. I never imagined I would take so much joy from a correctly drawn letter 'e' or a correctly identified number 8 - but it still makes me smile uncontrollably to think of these moments.
Break time was always good fun, when we would help to distribute the porridge and bananas to many very eager kids, then use whatever time was left to play the day away with them. I have absolutely fallen in love with these kids, miss them sorely, and cannot wait to return and see them again someday. For them, I hope that KYGN will be allowed to continue and to grow with help from their supporters around the world. Asante sana to everyone who makes it happen!
We are a family of four from Canada that is just wrapping up six weeks of volunteering at KYGN. It has been an inspirational experience for all of us, including my children who are 8 and 11 years old. At the school, we've been completing a number of tasks. I have a background in teaching, and have been providing assistance in the classroom. I haven't taught for some years, and it has been lots of fun working with the students of KYGN who are so motivated and eager to learn.

My husband has assisted a few times in class, but he loves to work with his hands and has been spending time looking for projects around the school. He has repaired broken desks, built two speed bumps to slow cars down as they pass the safe house to the main school, and hacked bushes away from the road using a machete. He loves the machete, because he probably couldn't find one in Canada!

I have been so impressed with how my girls have adapted to a new culture and made friends with the students and teachers alike. Sophie has worked with the nursery kids on numbers and letters and Claire has simply been providing friendship to children in all grades.
Anyone who thinks their children are too young to volunteer is mistaken! My children have grown from this experience, and they are eager to make a presentation to their school back home. There will definitely be tears on our last day at school. The teachers work so hard and the kids are beautiful. It has been inspirational to see how resilient children can be in the face of poverty. We will miss everyone when we go.
