Our Goals in 2017
Essential improvements
Volunteering Hours
Project Support
Fundraising Target
Since African Adventures’ inception in 2009, we have recruited nearly 4,000 volunteers, made up of students, charity and trust members, and individual travellers, to support our community development initiatives. Our work would not be possible without the support of every one of our incredible volunteers.
Our teaching volunteers help children develop their use of the English language, which is an extremely important skill for the children to practise because a good grasp of the English language is likely to help them in being accepted to university and, subsequently, getting a job. Building volunteers also play an important role in developing our partner projects’ facilities, ensuring that every child has access to a suitable learning environment.
Community Development Goals
- Donate classroom resources and sports equipment.
- Donate a new water tank to Tegbi Clinic to improve healthcare in rural areas. Completed in January 2017.
- Complete the construction of a two-storey, eight-classroom block at Dedzidi project. Ongoing progress throughout 2017/18.
- Provide over 13,000 volunteering hours to our partner projects.
- Finish constructing two new classrooms at Shalom School.
- Carry out renovation works at each of our partner projects.
- Re-roof six classrooms which are currently leaking.
- Continue the construction of perimeter walls at all projects.
- Help to fund the costs of feeding programmes and school resources.
Challenges
Communities in Anlo-ga face many challenges. Many rural schools do not receive government funding and, because of this, we rely on charities and volunteer organisations, such as African Adventures, to help us fund essential developments. Our medical facilities and hospitals lack a lot of basic equipment. Thanks to African Adventures, our local clinic now has a new birthing bed, sterilising equipment and mosquito-netted windows. In 2017, we need to install a water tank and buy thermometers and weighing scales.
Many families here struggle to provide their children with food for school, which means that concentration levels drop due to hunger and malnutrition. It costs just 50 pesewas (10p) to provide a child with lunch but many children, particularly orphans, cannot afford these costs. We help wherever we can to ensure that children from difficult backgrounds are given opportunity in life.
– Siva Vordzorgbe – Ghana Director, African Adventures.
Community Development Goals
- Continue with construction of the new Walk Centre primary school. Completion due in August 2017.
- Construct two new classrooms at Jubilee Academy school to alleviate overcrowding. Completion due in August 2017.
- Carry out renovation works at all projects.
- Provide over 20,000 volunteer hours in Kenya.
- Provide 2,500 volunteering hours in Zanzibar.
- Complete the construction of St. Trizah School by building the remaining four classrooms. Completion due in July 2017.
- Provide funds to help establish further micro-finance initiatives in Kenya. Funds provided to open a school uniform shop at Hadassah Mission School in February 2017.
- Continue with the construction of the new hall at Fuoni School.
- Provide over 400 desks and chairs across 14 projects.
- Donate classroom resources and sports equipment.
Challenges
African Adventures supports 14 community projects in Nakuru. The projects support children from underprivileged backgrounds whose families cannot afford the costs involved with attending a government school, and often cannot afford to feed their children.
African Adventures is also partnered with two government schools in Zanzibar which are heavily overpopulated and lack desperately needed funding for classroom maintenance and resources. With 10,000 students attending between them, both schools run two school days, with half of the students attending in the morning and half in the afternoon.
Some of the projects have seen a 20% growth on their student numbers year-on-year. To help alleviate the associated pressures, African Adventures volunteers are helping to construct essential new facilities. Teaching volunteers provide invaluable support with learning English – a vital skill.
– Alex Maina – East Africa Director, African Adventures.
Siva Vordzorgbe
Alex Maina
Our Progress in 2016
Progress At Our Partner Projects in Ghana
- Constructed a new toilet block at Rhema school, which previously lacked boys toilets.
- Constructed four perimeter walls at Woe E.P, Tegbi E.P, Rhema and Aklorbordzi schools.
- Renovated existing classrooms at Tegbi E.P, Dornorgbor, Ashiata and The Lord’s Academy schools.
- Continued with the construction of a two-storey, eight-classroom block at Dedzidi Community Complex School.
- Donated sterilising equipment to Tegbi Health Clinic and Hospital.
- Constructed three canteens at Woe E.P, Aklorbordzi and Dziedzorve schools.
- Began constructing two new permanent classrooms at Shalom School.
- Donated classroom resources and physical education materials.
- Provided over 8,000 volunteer teaching and building hours across 10 projects.
- Donated over £22,000 in grants to our partner projects.
Progress At Our Partner Projects in Kenya and Zanzibar
- Set up a micro-finance initiative at Chaddy Mission School in Kenya.
- Began work on the new Walk Centre Primary school as part of our Big Build Kenya project.
- Continued construction work on the new St. Trizah school site, building three new classrooms.
- Installed piped running water and constructed two new classrooms at Jubilee Academy school.
- Provided over 15,000 volunteer teaching and building hours across 11 projects.
- Donated classroom resources and physical education materials.
- Provided 271 desks and chairs across 11 projects.
- Constructed a concrete perimeter wall at Ronaken school.
- Donated over £65,000 in grants to our partner projects.
In 2016, we saw some significant and exciting developments at each of our partner projects in Africa. We had our largest ever summer programme and it’s thanks to our school, college, scout and charity groups that we were able to carry out such an ambitious programme of community development in 2016.
African Adventures volunteers helped to construct and renovate 48 classrooms across our projects in Ghana, Kenya and Zanzibar, and helped reduce the numbers of students per class at our Kenyan projects to create better learning environments. More than 300 students now have access to piped running water thanks to volunteer fundraising. In addition, we have donated sterilising equipment at Tegbi Clinic and hospital in Ghana to help reduce the risk of infection.
2016 also saw us raise over £100,000 for our partner projects through our charity, African Adventures Foundation. Our charitable Foundation enables volunteers to continue their support after travelling with us, furthering their impact by fundraising for our partner projects. Since its inception in 2013, the charity has raised over £310,000, (as at June 2017) and this is all thanks to our supporters and volunteers.
Rachel Northover