Article from Habari za Tanzania 1/2008

Managing the Global Contact volunteers

‘Working with the Danish volunteers is a lot of fun, because they have a different cultural background. We learn a lot from each other,’ says Adam Kaombwe who has been MS Tanzania’s Volunteer Co-ordinator since October 2006. On average, eight volunteers arrive every second month, and it is Adam who is responsible for their placement and stay.

By Katja Rasmussen, Intern with MS Tanzania

28. maj 2008

‘Gradually, we have got hold of a large database of organisations which are interested in hosting the volunteers. I try to find the ones that comply most with the wishes of the volunteer. Some want to work with the youngest children, some want to work with fundraising in a youth organisation.’

When the volunteers arrive, they go through an introduction course in Dar es Salaam: riding the dalla dallas, the do’s and don’ts in terms of Tanzanian culture, and a short Kiswahili course. But the most frequently asked question from the volunteers is: ‘What is the host family like?’

‘The volunteers actually seem to have a pretty good idea of what they are to expect. For some of them the lack of running water and the food takes a bit of time getting used to, but all of them really want to experience life in an average African village’, Adam explains.

Challenges
‘Sometimes when the volunteers have a problem they don’t call me right away. Instead they call the Danish office which then tries to help them from there. A while ago one of the volunteers called me in the middle of the night because he needed to go to a hospital. He had called the Danish office and they had told him where to go, but when he got there, there was no hospital. Some of the volunteers have also experienced problems with the families they are staying with, or find that things are not what they expected. Then I have to try to find other families for them.’

During their stay, most of them work in schools during the day, and some do fundraising activities or community visits in the afternoons. ‘The volunteers really contribute a lot during their stay. Many of them help the small organisations they work for write proposals and raise funds. But their presence in the schools is also a great contribution and can help create a change for the better’.

Mutual inspiration
‘The school leaders often tell me that they are very impressed with the hard work they put in and their spirit, even though they work for free. That often rubs off on the other teachers. Also, with regards to hitting the students, the Danish volunteers can set an example and try to teach the teachers that it is wrong to do so. And many of the volunteers have reported that the practice has stopped – at least when they are around’, says Adam.

Even though some might argue that the volunteers are taking jobs away from the Tanzanian teachers, Adam argues that this is not so. ‘We strongly underline that the volunteers work for free and should not substitute a paid job. We only choose organisations which need the extra hands. And they really appreciate the help the volunteers give.’

According to Adam, MS also gets something out of it. “The volunteers feel part of MS and through the word of the mouth they are raising awareness about MS and its work both here in Tanzania and when they get back to Denmark. This is a great way to get more publicity and to make more people aware of our existence.’