HIV/AIDS and Widows Encouragement

WEHAF (Widows Encouragement & HIV/AIDS Foundation)  was founded in 2016 to empower widows and people diagnosed with and AIDS/HIV to cultivate better lives for themselves and their families. Becoming a widow is always hard, but to become a widow after a husband dies due to HIV/AIDS creates a very difficult life in Tanzania. The women and their families lose their stable income, which in Tanzania is usually provided by the men, as well as also worrying they may lose their home since women move into their husbands house shortly after marriage and are not always accepted by the husbands family. Sometimes women can end up homeless and without any income, so they try to open a business that ensures a sustainable source of income. As an answer to these problems, the NGO WEHAF was founded to empower those in need. Based in the street area BMC (Bongonyo Movement for Change) within Arusha, the project aims to mobilise, motivate and advocate for people in vulnerable situations in areas of health, social justice and economic empowerment.

The project

Your day to day work here will focus largely on entrepreneurship training, research, community health initiatives, advocacy and fundraising. They run a variety of programs that support widows and their families that usually involve training in sustainable horticulture, tailoring or baking. They also work to implement village community banking schemes in rural areas around Arusha. WEHAF is always in need of volunteers, and they look for volunteers in the fields of marketing, business, health education, education for children, entrepreneurial skills, proposal writing and fundraising. The organisation has recently opened a workshop that teaches and trains women in tailoring as well as a  conversation group for both women and men to improve their understanding. You are welcome to oversee those activities and to bring any new ideas along with you regarding designs of products, daily organisation or marketing, conversation topics.

Important

You do not need any previous knowledge. Since WEHAF is interested in volunteers in various fields, you will be able to find something for you. It's important that you are self-driven and open-minded to find new ways to help and improve. To help the continuing of the foundation's work, donations and fundraisers are always welcomed.

Your work -  "a typical day"

There is no typical day for you as a volunteer at WEHAF. 

Every day will start with your travel to the NGO which is between 15 to 50 minutes depending on which means of transport you prefer (transport costs are not included). You can chose your own tasks regarding your knowledge and interest, so every day can be different due to that. As a volunteer at WEHAF, you can help find fabrics for the tailoring classes, lead through the conversation with different topics with men and women as preventive measure,  teach English to the women, coach women to regain their personal strength, help them writing business proposals and keeping their businesses running, possibly by introducing new marketing strategies, give support to maintain the website and social media sites, or you may even write and support fundraisers and be the daily point of contact to empower people from various backgrounds. You will work together with the young and motivated team each day to coordinate your activities. There is no typical day for a volunteer at WEHAF; you can choose your own tasks based on your areas of knowledge and interest so everyday can be different if that’s what you want. Each day you will arrive at the office in Arusha by 9am to discuss the work of the day. At 10 am the tailoring class starts, where the working places have to be prepared.

No matter what area you work in, you will feel like a valuable part of the whole project. The staff will always welcome you with open arms and encourage you to bring forward your thoughts and ideas to help improve the organisation. You will be part of a very meaningful work environment and all we ask is you bring along motivation, passion, initiative and any new ideas, so you may make a change in women's lives.

We offer a wide range of activities at affordable volunteer rates like: 

1. Hiking/Walking tours to waterfalls, through forests and around a lake. 

2. Swimming in paradise like hot springs with a glimpse of Mt. Kilimanjaro. 

3. Cultural tours to Maasai markets and the possibility to visit different ethnic groups.

4. Coffee plantation tour to learn about the process from the bean to the finished product. 

5. Safaris to the national parks of the Northern Circuit (Arusha NP, Lake Manyara NP, Tarangire NP, Serengeti NP, Ngorongoro Conservation Area). 

6. Climbing Mount Meru and Mount Kilimanjaro. 

7. FREE town tour for all our volunteers!