Tanzania and Zanzibar

The locations where we offer our options for volunteering and internships in Tanzania are the two islands Zanzibar & Pemba in the Indian Ocean, the Kilimanjaro region around Moshi, the Ngorongoro Region around Karatu, and Lake Victoria.

The airports Zanzibar (ZNZ), Kilimanjaro (JRO) and Dar-es-Salaam (DAR) are well connected via direct flights from Europe (London, Frankfurt, Rome) or with a single transit stop on the way (Dubai, Nairobi, Addis Abbaba, Cairo). 

Languages spoken in Tanzania are Swahili and English.  

Zanzibar

Zanzibar is a tropical archipelago in the Indian Ocean which belongs to Tanzania. The ship from the mainland takes around 2 hours, by plane it is only around 20 minutes from the mainland. When referring to "Zanzibar", most people in fact mean the archipelago's main island Unguja. In the past, Unguja was a rich island, as it was a main trading location along the Indian Ocean sea routes between Africa, Arabia, India, East Asia and Europe. The blend of cultures can be seen still today, but the Arabian-islamic influence is clearly dominating. Today, islam in Zanzibar is considered relatively liberal. Tourism is Zanzibar's main source of income, but also there is also farming of spices and tropical fruits.

Stone Town, the historic part of Zanzibar town is the only intact historical coastal trading town of East Africa. Within the fascinating labyrinth of small lanes full of tiny stores, souvenir shops, restaurant, hotels and busy little squares, you will feel like within a dream of "1001 nights". Also the white paradise tropical beaches with crystal clear water and colourful coral reefs are fantastic; they are competing for financially strong tourists with beaches of the Caribbean or the Maldives. 

The biggest problem of the island is poverty of large parts of the population whose sole occupancy is the farming or catching of their own food. Therefore they don't have any financial means allowing for higher education of their children or medical care. Due to the lack of education it is hard for them to escape the vicious circle of poverty. The growth of population which is mostly caused by immigration from the Tanzanian mainland has negative impact on the exploitation of nature. Because of the strong religious believes however Aids and problems related to Aids are not a predominating topic in Zanzibar.

Accommodation in Zanzibar

If your volunteer or internship activity takes place in or around Zanzibar Town, you will most probably stay in a shared house  or apartment together with other participants of World Unite! You will have a single room - if you want you can also share room with someone. You will share kitchen and toilet/shower with the others staying at the place. We will check cleanliness and safety of the houses/apartments. Most of them have western toilets with water flush, showers, electricity, fridge and electric cookers. Bed sheets and mosquito nets are being provided. However please be aware that even though our accommodation is high standard for local conditions, you are still in a developing country and cannot expect the high standards that you may find in the developed world in terms of sanitary installations, construction, or kitchen equipment.

In Stone Town it is possible to eat out at good standards for affordable prices. 

Optionally, there is the possibility to stay with local families in Stone Town. However, during the past years these families have found out that accommodating foreigners is a good source of income for them, therefore there is no large difference today (in terms of price and the relationship they have with foreigners) between staying at such families and staying at a commercial local guest house.

If you do an internship at a beach hotel outside of Zanzibar Town in most cases accommodation is provided by the hotel. If you volunteers or do internship at other places in Zanzibar, we will inform you about the available accommodation.

Leisure activities in Zanzibar 

In Zanzibar there is a large offer of leisure activities: Full-day or half-day excursions to discover a spice plantation, Jozani Forest National Park, beaches such as Nungwi, Paje and Jambiani, a "Safari Blue" sailing cruise through the Menai Bay Conservation Area, Prison Island, Chumbe Island Coral Park, a city tour through Stone Town where you can find numerous souvenir shops, bars, cafés, concerts and a handful of "clubs".

Pemba

Pemba, which is the northern of the two big islands of the Zanzibar archipelago is less populated than Unguja.  It is also more hilly and covered by tropical rainforest. Pemba is more remote from the rest of the world, Islam in Pemba is more conservative and everything is less developed. Only few tourists visit the island (Most of them honeymooners and divers/fishing tourists). There is no nightlife in Pemba, little traffic and no electricity during the whole day as it is produced by Diesel generators only. Life in the two "cities" Wete and Chake Chake is more like rural village life.

As only few tourists come to Pemba they are not (yet) being seen as sources of income as it is the case at many places with a higher level of tourism. The locals are very friendly and in many cases really interested in you as a person. In Pemba you can still experience a relatively original "Africa".

The general problems in Pemba are similar to the problems existing in the rural areas of its sister island Unguja.  

Accommodation in Pemba

Accommodation in Pemba will be with families. It can be the case that two volunteers will have to share one room. The standard in Pemba is generally lower - not every family which accommodates World Unite! volunteers will have a shower but often only a tap where you have to collect water in a bucket to take a shower or to flush  a squat toilet. Note: In Pemba accommodation is of considerably lower standard than in the Western world.

Leisure activities in Pemba: 

Talking with local, board games, swimming, diving, snorkelling, reading

Moshi/Kilimanjaro

Moshi is a city in the North of Tanzania on the foothills of Mount Kilimanjaro. Here, you will be in the middle of Africa and you will have to deal with people such as the Chagga or the Massai. The city has around 150,000 inhabitants, however like many African cities it appears to be much smaller. One reason is that large parts of the city are spread over a big area outside the actual city centre. Another reason is that the majority of the population doesn't have the financial means to buy lots of things, which has the result that there are much less shops in the city centre than for instance a European city of comparable size would have. 

The city is located at 813 m above sea level. Throughout the year it has a climate which most Europeans consider comfortable (compared to the humid heat you will find at the coastal area or on the islands).  Moshi is starting point for almost all Kilimanjaro climbs, therefore there are many hotels, restaurants and small supermarkets targeted towards tourists. Moshi is also the starting point for many safaris to the Northern National Parks; Kilimanjaro International Airport is located some 40 km South of Moshi.

Aids is the biggest problem in the Moshi area. There are estimates that around 16% of the population are HIV positive. Problems related to this are  the numerous orphans and street children that are due to the lack of money not looked after, as well as unattended people of old age. Further problems are related to poverty such as lacking access to education, health care and infrastructure.

Accommodation in Moshi

In Moshi accommodation will be most of the times with local families who offer a high standard (single room, shower, Western toilet with water flush) and who prepare breakfast and dinner. There is also the possibility to stay in shared houses/apartments together with other foreign volunteers/interns. They have kitchen with fridge and gas or electric cooker and Western water toilets. However please note that even these houses are "high standard" for locals,  you are still in a developing country and you cannot expect the high standards that you might be accustomed to from your home country, for instance in terms of sanitary installations, construction standards or kitchen equipment.

If you stay at rural areas outside of Moshi Town (e.g. Siha District) you have to accept that living standards are lower. We will inform you about the available options.

Leisure activities

Many day trips are possible to do from Moshi such as visiting the Marangu waterfalls and the village of Marangu with coffee plantations, the Nyumba ya Mungu hydroelectric dam, Lake Chala or going hiking on the foothills of Kilimanjaro. Multi-day activities include a Kilimanjaro trek (5-7 days) and safaris in all the Northern National Parks (2-7 days). In Moshi there are several cafés, restaurants, internet cafés, bars, discotheques and even an open air cinema with karaoke.

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On our blog (Currently in German only) some families and accommodation are presented in detail.