One unique feature of our organization is that we operate through a partnership between overseas volunteers and a staff of local Kenyans. All of our international coordination, fundraising, and marketing is done through a staff of unpaid volunteers from outside of Kenya. Our on-the-ground operations are all run by local Kenyans who are trained in development, education, HIV/AIDS counseling and home-based care.
From our first-hand experiences in Kenya, we have witnessed certain situations in development work that can inhibit progress. Unfortunately, development and education projects offered by some organizations often reach a limited number of individuals. Most often, only those living in easily accessible locations benefit from knowledge and treatment offered by these organizations. We believe that it is important to reach those that are often overlooked and to teach from within and not from above. Working with and educating those living in the rural villages, we hope to have an impact in areas not often touched by international aid.
Through our HIV/AIDS Education program, we equip rural community members of the Western Province with the tools and knowledge that are necessary for preventing the disease, which is a major obstacle to sustained growth and development. We also provide Kenyans with the skills they need to teach each other, which facilitates knowledge transfer following our visits.
Through the provision of affordable healthcare at the Bill Selke Memorial Clinic and our mobile clinics, we are decreasing the number of serious illnesses and deaths due to manageable diseases. We provide general health care to rural community members who would otherwise never have access to such care.
Through our Microenterprise Development Program, we are helping rural women’s self-help groups start small income-generating projects, such as sewing/tailoring shops, bee-keeping projects to harvest honey, fisheries, and horticulture projects on group land.
Through our Primary School, we are building a strong culture of education for the future leaders of Kenya. Our Public Library provides opportunity for increased literacy for adults and children in the Kabula area.
Volunteering
Our on-the-ground operations are all run by local Kenyans who are trained in development, education, HIV/AIDS counseling and home-based care. All of our program activities are coordinated through the local Kenyan staff and then run on a day-to-day basis by volunteers from abroad. We have had over 250 volunteers from all over the world with various educational and professional backgrounds.
As of 2011, we have had volunteers from 24 different countries travel to Kenya to work on our programs. We have had undergraduate student volunteers, medical students, doctors, business professionals seeking a “vacation” from work, families seeking to experience a different world and get a once in a lifetime experience, and world travelers looking to take an adventurous trip that has a social purpose and impact.
Our programs:
- Education
- Healthcare
- HIV/AIDS Education
- Microenterprise
- Women’s Health
As Volunteer Kenya continues to grow, we strive to improve upon our existing programs and are always looking for new ideas and input. All of our programs are volunteer initiated, funded, and run. We have had past volunteers interested in starting small projects such as women’s reproductive health education courses, clean water access research, cow rearing/breeding and donation projects, etc.
Each volunteer has unique ideas and insights which they use to develop and test new types of programs during their time in Kenya. Therefore, while our main programs are described above, volunteers are always free to do research and discuss the possibility of organizing their own small-scale projects and programs during their trip.
For further reading on the programs please visit our blog section: Volunteer Kenya Programs
Note: The name Volunteer Kenya is used as the international name for our organization, but we are known as ICODEI (Inter-Community Development Involvement) within Kenya
