I have always loved Africa and all things African for as long as I can remember. When I was very little I would spend hours making safari parks in the back garden with my toy animals, containing compounds with different sized pens for each type of animal and sunken ice cream tubs as watering holes; have always liked the idea of ten foot high fences made with logs; and my favourite films were Hatari and Africa - Texas Style!
I eventually got to visit the Dark Continent in 2001 to see a solar eclipse in Zambia, traveling from Nairobi, Tanzania to Johannesburg, South Africa, and saw my third solar eclipse in Ghana last year. Of all the countries in East Africa I enjoyed Tanzania the most, by far. The people, the landscape, the animals, the culture, the cuisine; one day I would love to own a little bolt hole in Stone Town, Zanzibar.
Upon returning, I knew that one day I would have to live there for a period of time. I even actively sought a job in which I could work with Swahili speakers and learn the language on a daily basis, a resource which sadly I have since woefully neglected to use. Initially I wanted to spend a year working on a game reserve but found most were only game parks (large exotic farms catering for tourists) and situated in South Africa. Through my research I soon discovered the many different NGO’s involved with aiding micro-finance, education, womens rights, combating HIV, irrigation, orphanages, etc. Gradually I found the idea of spending my time working with animals whilst neglecting the human challenges currently present in Africa, increasingly troubling. Over time I resolved myself to putting any plans to chase around the bush after large mammals on the shelf for the next couple of decades.
So I then concentrated on finding an NGO that would suit me and my limited skill-set, not being trained as a doctor, nurse, engineer, mechanic, IT geek or teacher. I spent countless hours researching many charities and organisations but was disappointed to find many obstacles: being only open to people of specific professions; only accepting people from the USA or Canada; were missions only giving aid with a large distasteful dose of Christianity; or glorified travel agencies offering the chance to teach children as part of a month long safari package for several thousand dollars.
I needed to find an NGO run by Africans for Africans, that recognises the value of a person’s enthusiasm, drive and commitment, rather then a slickly run, disturbingly corporate, Western organisation that equates the size of one’s wallet with the contribution that an individual can offer. This limited my options, especially considering that said organisation needed a web presence and be based in the Swahili region of East Africa.
I found it! Fonelisco
Through the internet, I also found that the organisation is also supported by a Swedish charity and an Edinburgh Uni Society. I also found a few blogs of previous volunteers and spent a few hours reading up on their efforts, and emailing one of them for more of an insight. I have yet to contact Joseph Elias as I am still several months away from going but will contact him towards the end of this year.
One Comment
favorited this one, man
Post a Comment