Arusha Project
Empowering Women Living with HIV in Tanzania
Role: International Volunteer
Coordinators: Valerie Taormina, Cheryl Antao, Jennifer Griffith
Partnership:
Arusha Project is a grassroots NGO that focuses on the empowerment of HIV-positive women through nutrition, education, employment, and counseling. A portion of volunteer fees was distributed to the organization-run microfinance and farming programs.
Under the umbrella organization, volunteers were placed on projects teaching English, doing hospital work, and collecting stories, as well as participating in the NGO's permaculture and microfinance programs. With instruction on the Swahili language and local medical issues, day trips to Mt. Meru, cultural classes about the local Maasai tribes, and frequent visits to the main town, volunteers were able to experience a lifestyle few have been lucky enough to firsthand.
Language Teaching
Personal placements were based on prior experience. My placement consisted of teaching 52 orphans English, ranging from one-and-a-half to ten years of age.
Subject Interviews
All volunteers contributed to the microfinance project by conducting surveys with groups of HIV-positive female entrepreneurs with the help of Swahili interpreter. Questions focused on sensitive medical information, education, quality of life, and proposed business.
Farming Techniques
Permaculture techniques and theories were taught by a horticulture expert, and volunteers practiced techniques on the local farm bought by the organization in the local village of Kwaiidi. Fruit and vegetables grown on the farm were to be distributed to the HIV-positive locals partnered with our program.