We asked our previous volunteer why volunteering is important.

The experience as a volunteer had a great impact on my life. It gave my way of looking at the world more perspective and I got to know myself better. I’m very grateful for this journey and getting to meet all of this lovely people with such big hearts. – Hanne Van Doren, Belgium

My time in Eswatini was incredibly impactful, as I really loved volunteering in this beautiful country and meeting so many friendly people along the way. Volunteering here proved that the smallest of actions can make a huge difference in somebody’s day or even later on in their lives, and this was really fulfilling. Knowing that we helped in teaching children to swim as well, and helped with children in primary schools doing their exams, is such a wonderful thing. My work here reminded me of how important it is to take time out of our day to day lives so that we can volunteer and give back to others, and it has made me a lot more appreciative and a lot more willing to step out of my comfort zone. Thank you Eswatini! – Nina Marquand-Karp, Sydney Australia

Where are you from?

Hello, I’m Annabell and born and raised in Denmark.

What project did you sign up for?

I sign up for working with children and luckily, I ended up doing sport with the Swazi kids at different NCP’s.

What do you do for a living?

For a living, I’m head of the waitress at a restaurant where we have all from people coming to eat before moving to day meetings, confirmations or big parties up to 900 people. So, I have a busy everyday life with up to 16 hours shifts, but I love my work and love what I’m doing.

What does volunteering mean to you?

Actually, it did not mean anything to me before I came to Africa. But after being in Eswatini and helping all the children to have fun (more fun – because they were ALWAYS smiling) it gave me a new sign of volunteering and made me realize they are people out there that need my help, your help.

I remember visiting one of the NCPs, the kids started jumping, clapping and shouting “ALL OUT AFRICA, ALL OUT AFRICA”, my face was soaked with tears and my heart melted, I was happy to see these beautiful kids. 

Reason for choosing All Out Africa?

I booked my trip through a company called Travel Alott, so I didn’t choose All Out Africa, they choose me

But they were SO nice and sweet, and you could ask them everything and they will try to figure something out for you and help you. Great staff, actually love them and I will truly recommend book a trip with All Out Africa.

Your experience as a volunteer, did it have any positive impact in your life?

Not as a volunteer, but the whole trip to South Africa alone with people from all over the world, showed me, that I could really do it. I was so scared to go, but it was my best trip so far. It showed me that sometimes we just have to jump into it and just do something. And I will definitely go around the world (and go back to Eswatini) to help people.

Click here if you would like to know more about our Childcare (Eswatini)

Nomthandazo, which means prayer in SiSwati has been diagnosed with congenital megacolon on admission at the hospital. This condition has caused a serious bowel obstruction, which has resulted in her stomach and small intestines to drift apart. This condition has left Nomthandazo’s growth stunted to the point that physically she looks four years old, yet she is nine years old in actuality.

The economic status of her family also does not make it any easier for Nomthandazo. In addition to her medical condition, she has also suffered from severe malnutrition. Despite numerous consultations with doctors over the years, who had been trying to address her malnutrition her nutritional state would either remain the same or worse. It wasn’t until she was referred to a private facility that doctors were able to attribute her malnutrition in part to her bowel obstruction, properly diagnose. Unfortunately, there were no resources to cater for her medical needs, that could get her back on track. That is until, an All Out Africa volunteer (Cleo) from the UK, who joined our program last December. She was touched by Nomthandazo’s story and generously donated towards her medical bills. As I write this blog I just wiped a tear due to the excitement of the news that brave Nomthandazo has come out of the operating theatre. The operation has been a success and will discharge after spending ten days in the hospital for recovery. Nomthandazo will still require some additional consultations with doctors to make sure the operation continues to be successful, however, for now, she is in good hands and on the path to a healthy, pain-free life.

At All Out Africa, we are so grateful to our volunteers for allowing us to be a connection for cases like Nomthandazo’s.

It’s been a journey worth the wait!

Update! After almost a year, Nomthandazo is doing well and growing! We love watching her continue to bloom. Volunteers can truly change a life, and this little miracle is living proof!

Nomthandazo almost one year after her surgery. She is gaining weight and happy!

Written by Eunice (NCP Coordinator)

If you would like to donate to our Foundation, so we can contribute to stories like this one, you can donate here https://www.globalgiving.org/projects/educate-a-swazi-child/

Since 2004, All Out Africa Foundation has developed Six Neighborhood Care Points (NCP’s). For more than 1,000 kids these NCP’s have set a solid foundation for their education and allowed them to speed past their peers once they reached primary school age, and beyond. It has been an amazing journey to watch and be a part of.

As our NCP’s continue to expand their reach and help even more vulnerable children and families, we need to stop and evaluate our successes and our challenges. This is why this year we are calling for special interns to be a part of our Early Childhood Education Internship.

This internship will help us develop and implement a series of evaluation tools to add to our NCP’s. This will help us gage how we are doing, how our kids are learning, how our teachers are teaching and even beyond, tracking our students throughout their studies. If you want to be a part of our NCP history, as well as the foundation of hundreds of kids education, then we encourage you to apply for this unique opportunity!

For more information download our Early Childhood Education Project Brief here: Early Childhood Education Internship Project Overview

If this looks like an internship that you would like to be a part of, email us at bookings@alloutafrica.com with a little bit more about you along with your CV. We would love to meet you and get started!

Please note that this is internship is a PAID experience, in which participates pay a fee to participate. Fee includes cost of accommodation, 3 meals a day and All Out Africa Staff support from qualified personnel.

There are many community members we work with who are seeking a way to empower themselves. We are targeting these people, and want to provide them and their great ideas with help, funding, and training to give them the skills they need to succeed. This will enable them to secure a sustainable future for themselves through small-scale entrepreneurship. We hope this kind of initiative will create a ripple of change, that will stem from the entrepreneur and spread through their families and communities as a source of inspiration.

In July of this year (2018) we will complete our first loan cycle. We have a lot to learn from this initial loan reimbursement, and we need to develop a plan for future loans based on this pilot so our future entrepreneurs are getting the best support from our Foundation to find success.

If you have an interest in Micro-Finance or Marketing for small businesses, we are looking for people like you to help us kick start this project! If you are interested, please email bookings@alloutafrica.com, tell us a little bit about yourself and include your CV.

We can’t wait to change the world with you!

For more information about this internship download the project brief here! Micro Finance Pilot & Development Project Brief

Please note that this is internship is a PAID experience, in which participates pay a fee to participate. Fee includes cost of accommodation, 3 meals a day and All Out Africa Staff support from qualified personnel.