Project Aims and Volunteer Role
Help in education is our central objective. We believe education is vital for long-term development and seek to help directly in classrooms, as well as helping families to support their children in school (a child with an empty stomach can’t learn).
As volunteer assistants in schools, you will act as an extra resource for the class teacher, not a substitute. Leading some sections of a lesson is fine but the class teacher remains in overall charge. It is vital that students understand lessons - too often they copy from the blackboard without any real understanding - a team approach (teacher and volunteer) may help.
In the area of family and community support, we aim to discuss, encourage and help with the planning of savings and development of income-generating ideas so that parents are better able to pay school fees. We must not pretend to be experts or attempt to be financiers. You will soon discover in this type of work, that most Ugandans believe that the only thing preventing business success is lack of capital - simply changing this perception is a valuable input. Our project has some connections and experience which could be of use to interested groups in areas such as efficient charcoal/wood burning stoves, cooking-bags, solar cookers and tailoring as well as community savings schemes. Volunteers can introduce these ideas to community groups.
Volunteer Centres
The project has two centres with volunteer accommodation in Jinja, the second largest town in Uganda, and Buswale, a small village close to the Kenyan border. More details about each centre can be found in the website guide.
Volunteer Requirements and Talents
Volunteers should be over 18, usually under 75 yrs of age, and in good health. Skills of all kinds will be most welcome - academic, sporting, practical and social. We aim to give the volunteer work which ‘fits into’ his/her interests and talents so that they enjoy the experience and the community they are working with get the best from their service. Do not be afraid if you do not have a specialised talent or skill – a willingness to work hard, listen actively to members of the host community and behave in a way that respects the culture are the most important requirements.
Volunteer Work Options
- Assistant in Nursery and Primary School Classes
- English Assistants in Secondary School Classes
- Sports Support Workers
- Secondary School Assistants in Other Subject Areas
- Building/Maintenance Work
- Community Project Assistants
More detail can be found on the Work Option and Project Centre pages.
Costs for Volunteers
Volunteers are responsible for paying their travel, insurance and airport transfers and for buying their food and drink at the centres, which are run on a self-catering basis. Accomodation charges at both centres include gas, electric, laundry and the cleaning of communal areas. Volunteers should either keep their own rooms clean or make an agreement with the house manager for this extra service.
- Shared Dormitory accommodation UGS 250,000 per month or part-month
- Individual ensuite room UGS 600,000 per month or part month
Currently £1 sterling buys UGS 4,000 €1 buys UGS 3,200
US$1 buys UGS 2,500
The houses in each centre have individual ensuite and dormitory style bedrooms with communal kitchen, living room and toilet/bathroom facilities together with a covered communal outdoor area. Jinja has mains electricity and water, while Buswale has solar power and a harvested rainwater supply. Both houses have bottled gas for cooking – in Buswale there will be a back-up wood-burning stove. Both centres have a local manager.
Airport pick-up at Entebbe will be arranged for you (Jinja UGS 150,000 or Buswale UGS 220,000 - this being the private hire journey cost. Where there is more than one volunteer, the charge can be shared).
The project is run on a non-profit basis. Volunteer charges are used in the following ways
- To cover the running costs of the centres
- To maintain a fund which can be used to initiate projects and improvements at schools and in the community
- To provide capital, in the long-term, so that similar centres can be started in other districts.
The founders of the project, retired teachers, Martin and Gill Murphy do not draw a salary - they are also volunteers. They provided the start-up capital from their own pockets and do not intend to ask for repayment. However, in line with the philosophy of self-sustainability, it is hoped that local communities/schools will eventually take on the responsibility of the present centres and provide the necessary start-up capital for new centres. Thus, the community/school truly own their volunteer program and the benefits of having such a scheme can roll over to another community