Women Empowerment in Arusha – Tanzania

Volunteers in the Women Empowerment Program get an opportunity to help a local project in Arusha that is doing tremendous work to give a second chance to young women who couldn’t finish school because of early pregnancy.

Every year they house over 30 young women and their babies, while also providing them with entrepreneurship skills and basic education to be able to support themselves when they leave the center.

Using its primary goal of empowering single teen mothers, girls, and vulnerable children throughout Tanzania, the project strives to transform the lives of women, girls, and children who have been victims of gender violence and human trafficking in both urban and rural areas with an aim of helping them achieve social and economic stability.

Volunteer support to the project is essential as we believe every single woman should have the opportunity to take control over their own lives and contribute to their community.Volunter support is invaluable in helping the project make a positive impact on the lives of young mothers and girls in the community.

The centre provides young mothers with vocational training such as cooking, hairdressing and tailoring to empower them to achieve financial independence. In parallel, their children are raised and cared for in Montessori daycare. 

Want to see other ways to make an impact? Check out our Volunteer in Africa programs.

Volunteer Roles & Responsibilities

Volunteers in the project can help out in a wide variety of tasks depending on their level of expertise, skills and choice as well as depending on the requirements at the project.Volunteers are encouraged to combine roles to increase their contribution and support at the project.

Volunteering opportunities in all the project facilities namely cooking teaching, marketing and fundraising, children’s day care, pre school assistant, tailoring and handicraft teaching,English teaching,hairdressing and computer training.

Volunteer duties and responsibilities vary according to the type of role assigned to the participant.

Examples of some tasks carried out by volunteers include –

Tailoring and Handcrafts

• Support the tailoring and handcraft instructors in teaching and mentoring the girls

• Instruct on specific handcraft and tailoring techniques such as knitting and embroidery

• Help the girls create new handcraft items

• Propose ideas for innovative handcraft products that the girls can produce and sell after graduating from the center

Marketing and Fundraising

• Update brochures and marketing materials 

• Create and design new marketing collateral

• Launch fundraising campaigns, such as crowdfunding, for new initiatives like financing a new building

• Identify and reach out to potential donors, including large corporations

• Investigate and contact handcraft shops for product placement of our handmade items 

• Research and connect with safari companies regarding our lunch stop offerings

Apart from the above, roles can be assigned in cookery, teaching, childcare worker roles at the project.

Requirements & eligibility

Volunteers must be 17 years or older at the time of joining the project. You need to have an open mind and a flexible attitude for working in a new and different environment. The volunteer should bring energy and enthusiasm to make a difference. Participants must be fit and healthy at the time of joining the program. Participants should have no criminal convictions and should provide a clean criminal background check report. A parental consent form shall be required for Under 18 participants joining the program.Participant having skills in teaching, computers, cooking, hairdressing, tailoring would be an added advantage