volunteering & internships
Overview
- Age: min. 17 years
- Duration: 4 weeks – 6 months
- Program Start: Every Thursday
- Affordable Fees detailed fee structure
- Accommodation and Meals in our comfortable volunteer houses or host families
- Our whole team is based in Tanzania and always there for you!
- For people of all walks of life!
- Please also read our information brochure / FAQ about a stay with us!
By volunteering you show active social commitment and make an important contribution to international understanding!
With STEP Africa you have the opportunity to find a project in Tanzania that exactly matches your interests. You can also have your voluntary work recognized as an internship for your studies.
Volunteering in Tanzania will be an unforgettable experience for you and will strengthen your intercultural skills. As a positive side effect you can score with your abroad experience with future employers. Even if you are a highschool graduate or are unsure about your future professional career, your time in Tanzania and the work in your project can consolidate your desired career or give you new impulses for your decision-making. Volunteering can also be a great chance for professionals to enhance their skills and gain valuable experiences in a developing country. You will get to know aid work in Africa with all its challenges first hand and will be able to form your own opinion!
Meaningful Volunteering
We only place our volunteers into projects in which they can gain a lot of valuable experience for their future. Our volunteers do not replace local workers. Volunteers are assistants who offer support to employees. They also use their expertise to teach their target groups new skills and to open new perspectives.
Reducing Prejudices
What many of us have learned about Africa in the media doesn’t always reflect the truth. In Africa there is more than just poverty and misery. Tanzania is a country full of ideas and resources, politically stable and of breathtaking beauty.
Volunteer with a learning mindset
All of our projects welcome volunteers regardless of their backgrounds or believes. Volunteers are expected to be open-minded and creative because the areas of responsibility are not always precisely defined. With a little initiative and flexibility the integration into the project is usually very smooth. Volunteering in Tanzania always means learning to understand everyday life in a local aid project. We do not want our volunteers to replace local workers but rather want them to see themselves as supplementary workers who, through their assistance, contribute towards joyful day to day life in the projects and support intercultural exchange. We firmly believe that volunteers can make a long-term and positive contribution to their projects. But volunteering doesn’t just mean: “Hi, I’m here to help!” but rather: “Hi, I’m here to learn from you how I can help – now or in the future!”.
Our Current Projects
We aim at placing each of our volunteers into projects that best suit their skills and interests. Our projects are selected based on criteria of sustainability and their efforts towards education and, above all, based on their credibility and transparency. We are critically aware that not every aid project is a good project! We build on mutual acceptance and tolerance. At STEP Africa we do not make a conceptual difference between voluntary work and internships abroad because we believe that you are always both: A helper and a learner.
At Step Africa, we send volunteers to our own projects under the umbrella of our NGO L.I.F.E. Tanzania as well as to sustainable and trustworthy partner organizations and projects, some of which we have known for a decade.
Follow the link to get to know all of our current projects
Your advantages with STEP Africa
Your stay in Tanzania should be beneficial and meaningful for yourself as well as for your project. We will therefore provide you with intensive support right from the start. With the help of our volunteer guidebook you will be able to prepare for your assignment step by step. We are always there for you and can provide you with advice and hands-on support in case of any questions or unexpected problems. Our team is in regular and personal contact with all of our projects. This is the only way we can ensure that sustainable work is done and that you as a volunteer are in best hands.
Our Volunteer Program - Explained Step by Step
You can sign up for the STEP volunteer program online using our application form. Before you register you should think about your desired field of work and specify your expectations and wishes for your stay in Tanzania. This way we will get an idea of which project(s) will best suit you.
Please note that our arrival days are always Thursdays and our departure days are always Wednesdays and you should plan your travels accordingly.
A trip to Africa is always a great adventure and experience shows that anticipation and excitement increase as the day of departure approaches. But you can go about your preparations very relaxed, because in Tanzania you can expect an unforgettable time with an infinite number of new experiences. The less expectations you have of your time in Tanzania, the more open-minded you will be.
With our STEP Africa guidebook you’ll have all To-Dos at a glance, such as flight booking, vaccinations, visa formalities and more. This way you can organize everything well in advance and without pressure. The content of our volunteer guide book also prepares you for your upcoming tasks in the projects. Read everything carefully and conscientiously, but also learn to take it easy and enjoy the anticipation, too!
When you arrive at Kilimanjaro Airport our driver will already be waiting for you to take you to the volunteer house or host family. In many ways daily life in Africa is very different from life in a western country. So a certain culture shock is quite normal in the beginning but will certainly wear off soon the more you get to know your new home away from home.
Fridays are orientation days – On the first day after your arrival you will receive a detailed orientation. We will show you around Arusha town, explain how to use public transport and where banks and the most important shops are found. You will also receive a detailed health and security briefing. Soon you will feel confident enough to explore everything on your own. On your first work day, we will accompany you to your project and discuss your tasks and working hours together with the project management.
Most of the volunteers get used to life in Africa very quickly and it is usually much more difficult for them to leave Tanzania in the end than it was to get used to everything. You can rest assured that we are always there for you, especially during your settling-in period, to give you the best possible start in Tanzania. You will also meet other volunteers and like-minded people with whom you can share your experiences.
Weekly work hours in your project will usually be between 20 to 40 hours, depending on whether you want to work part- or full-time. You will usually have the weekends off, you can however choose to support your projects during the weekends too, should the need arise. In either case, you are entitled to 2 off-days per week. Your tasks vary depending on the project you work at. You should be ready to work independently and pro-actively as tasks aren’t always following a fixed schedule. Always remember that you act as an assistant trying to support and take work from your local colleagues.
Besides of your project work you will have plenty of opportunities to explore Arusha and the surrounding area during your leisure time. Everyday life in Tanzania is full of adventures. One of them being the daily trips with the Daladala, the local minibus that takes you to every corner of town. It will not be long before you master your first sentences in Swahili, the extended greetings, numbers and other basics. Its a great feeling being able to negotiate the prices on the market in Swahili for the first time! As a “Mzungu”, meaning a European or white person, it is inevitably that you will often stand out and attract attention. But it’s something you will soon get used too as well. Especially children are very curious and -walking through the street – you will certainly more than once hear greetings such as: “Good morning Mzungu. How are you?”.
You are not alone in Tanzania! You will quickly gain new friends among locals and fellow volunteers. A friendly and supportive atmosphere is very important to us at STEP Africa. Our volunteers form a community that supports each other through any challenges and problems. Always keep in mind that volunteering is never one-sided, but will give you the opportunity to learn a lot about yourself and life in Tanzania, while at the same time supporting and contributing to your project.
Volunteer Accommodation
Our volunteers can choose between accommodation in one of our STEP Africa Hostels and accommodation in one of our two lovely host families. Our volunteer houses are located in Njiro district, Arusha in a central location with good access to projects and shops for daily needs but still outside the stressful city centre. They are a retreat for our volunteers and their home away from home during their time in Tanzania. In the houses, everyone finds like-minded people and our team is always available to answer questions, give ideas or just to have a chat with. STEP volunteers are also housed together in the host families and can get to know life in a Tanzanian family at first hand.