Benefiting local communities is one of our fundamental principles and we hope it will be a factor in your choosing to come on holiday with us. We do this both through our trading practices and direct donations. Charity is not enough, nor is it sustainable, so use of local staff, purchase of local foodstuffs and patronising locally owned hotels, campsites and facilities are completely standard - there are no woolly "whenever possible" caveats on our safaris. 

But we do make considerable financial donations and assist in other direct ways. Below are more details of our work in action:

Maasai women's self-help project
One of our destinations in Kenya is the tiny village of Maji Moto in the Loita Hills. Here, headteacher Hellen Nkuraiya, has just started a small project for the local Maasai women which we support - this in her own words is what it's about.

"Our project name is ENKITENGLEPA, meaning a cow which belongs to all of us. Enkitenglepa has 20 members most of them being single mothers, [widowers] Our project is empowering women economically through establishment of income generating activities eg beadwork, buying and selling cows, selling milk, Maasai attires/souvenirs etc to make them self reliant or economically independent. Our project is also advocating for girl child education and we have established a rescue village for both widowers and the young girls escaping from early marriages and female genital mutilation".

IntoAfrica has donated $700 in 2007, $500 in 2008 and $1,500 so far in 2009. You can visit the project on our Kenya Explorer safari.

School building
At Esilalei Maasai village in the Manyara/Tarangire wildlife corridor, the nursery class was always under the big tree. In 2008 we agreed with the elders to build, equip and provide the teacher for a nursery school building. This year (2009) we are adding another classroom and teacher.

In return we have agreed access to their village and surrounding lands allowing our clients on the Tanzania Explorer safari unique insights into the way of life, culture and environment of these fascinating people. The school is open for visits in term time. Our financial contribution to this school construction totals US $4,360.

 
School equipment
In Tanzania government schools are tragically under-resourced. In partnership with a group of previous American clients* we have built another nursery school and added classrooms and desks to a primary school in Mto Wa Mbu. We carved our name on the desks (something I used to do when much younger)!

* see below

Asante Africa Foundation
After travelling on one of our safaris Erna Grasz and several of her friends went back to the States and formed a foundation to provide assistance for some of the local communities we visit and support. Here is the Migungani nursery school they built in Mto Wa Mbu, Tanzania. You can see more about their work on their own website - Asante Africa Foundation

School stuff
Rather than leave cash, we ask teachers to provide a list of required texts and then we buy and deliver these ourselves. Our contributions are roughly equivalent to $5 per person per visit. Also many of our clients fill extra space in their bags with pens, exercise books and odd bits of school equipment they may be able to get hold of. This is always greatly appreciated on school visits.

Shoe service ...
 It's always a problem making sure everyone in a community sees some benefit from your visit and preventing jealousy amongst those not directly involved. Here at Olgilai nursery, after talking to parents, we came up with a plan! After measuring each child's feet, we delivered a new pair of shoes to everyone in the school.
School fees
When we started our treks and safaris we donated money to heads of schools. Sadly we discovered that this money was not always used as we thought. Now we pay school fees for individual children direct to the school's bank account or bursars. We have no egalitarian system (nor the time) for choosing these kids from thousands of deserving cases but just select from the areas and villages where we have contacts. From 2004 until 2007 IntoAfrica assisted three Kenyan girls with annual school fees and equipment. This year we have added two more girls and one boy. This pic shows Gloria and Nampaso (with my two kids Resian and Lulu in the front) during a visiting day at Enkare Nairowa school in March 2007. Total sponsorship support for 2006 was US $1,600; in 2007 $1,525; in 2008 $550, so far in 2009 $1,500.

School Letter Exchange
IntoAfrica facilitates exchange of letters written by schoolchildren at the remote Ole Pariata Primary in Kenya with Greenhills Primary in Sheffield - by physically carrying the bundles of letters as there's no other reliable way! Here the head and a parent governor review the latest batch. This not only helps children's understanding of different cultures in a very direct way but reveals fascinating insights into their two very different lives and perceptions. If anyone is interested in this we can provide further details. Since 2006 we have also provided $350 worth of equipment and uniforms to this school.

Nadupoi Kantai

Was one of the Maasai girls we sponsored in Maji Moto (Enkare Nairowa), Kenya. I just put this pic in because she asked me, so that when she goes to Narok at end of term she'll be able to browse on the Post Office computer and see herself on the web!

Cattle dip delivery
Ensuring that everyone in a community benefits from our visits is not easy. One way we found to do this was buying cattle dip - Tratix in fact. All Maasai ultimately rely on cows so keeping them healthy has a trickle down effect for everyone. Here the elders from Olanganaiyo in Kenya (one of the places on our Kenya Explorer itinerary) receive the chemicals. Each year we provide $250 worth - enough for over 1,500 animals.

Arusha Children's Trust
An NGO set up in 1999 to support underprivileged children in Rift Valley region of Tanzania. They have built a community centre near Arusha where they run workshops on preservation of traditional cultures and wildlife conservation, an outreach health clinic and a kindergarten school for 4-6 year olds. Funds are needed for teacher salaries, equipment and educational materials and a hot porridge breakfast each day for the kids. We liked their ethos and now donate $500 every year. Our clients can arrange to visit the project if they wish. http://www.arushachildrenstrust.org/
Streetkids International e.V
We were contacted by this German NGO seeking help. They  work in Dar Es Salaam to provide homes for abandoned children. We had no links with them but their work appealed to us and seemed to benefit a very worthy section of Tanzanian society. We made a one-off donation of US $600 for one of their house projects.

Tourism Concern's Porters' Rights Guidelines
We run treks and safaris on Kilimanjaro, Mt Meru and Mt Kenya and are proud of the way we treat the porters and local staff we employ. We comply wherever local social and economic conditions allow with the code of practice which you can read in full here.

Also our trips can include visits to locally organised activities. There are detailed descriptions here:

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