Volunteers travelled to Zanzibar over the summer to make a lasting impact on the lives of over 17,000 children in Zanzibar. Together, our groups completed over 12,000 hours of volunteering at our partner schools.
Ubago Primary School
Our first group of the Zanzibar Summer Programme kicked things off with a 21-night trip to the island, where they helped to construct a library which would include a secure storage area at Ubago Primary School.
All our project work is led by our partner schools and comes directly from them. Teachers at Ubago were struggling to find a safe place to store essential school supplies, including books, and students had no quiet area to study.
Ubago had a half-constructed building on site from years ago, which was unfinished due to a lack of funds. Our volunteers helped to convert this building into a library, which otherwise would have collapsed if left. Volunteers worked hard plastering and painting the walls.
This project has benefited more than 400 students and ten teachers and was funded by Will Newbolt, our Partnerships Manager, Alistair White, our Partnerships Co-ordinator, Holly Newbolt and Vinay Panchal, who completed a 100k ultra-marathon for African Adventures Foundation.
Our second group of the programme, who volunteered at Ubago played a big part in renovating the school’s facilities and improving the classroom environment by relaying a broken and uneven floor in two classrooms.
Al-Ikhwan Nursery & Primary School
Al-Ikwan Nursey & Primary School who we have been partnered with for two years, welcomed two groups of volunteers this summer.
The two groups painted eight classrooms between them, which our previous group laid the flooring for in two of those classrooms. We can’t wait to see how these improvements will enhance the learning experience for 280 students!
Volunteers also taught a range of subjects including Maths, English and Biology and played football with many of the students as part of PE lessons, making use of new footballs and kit that they had taken as donations.
Both groups kindly bought suitcases full of donations for the local community and school, ranging from clothes and sanitary products to a wide range of stationery.
“As teachers on the trip, we couldn’t be prouder of this group of students. They have been absolutely magnificent and done our school proud. We know they will forever be marked by their experiences here and that they will never forget this life-changing adventure.” Group Leader.
Kinuni School
This summer, volunteers continued renovating the classrooms at Kinuni School. With classes consisting of up to 100 students, classrooms can become quickly worn and with holes in the floor and walls, making it an unsuitable learning environment.
Two groups of volunteers visited Kinuni this summer and they completed the inside and outside of the two classrooms. The first group started by sweeping and prepping the walls before filling in any holes. They then gave everything a fresh coat of paint. The second group then laid the new floor in the classrooms.
Volunteers also taught grades 1 to 10 a range of subjects including: Dance, Drama, English, Music, and PE.
Between lessons, the volunteers got to enjoy an extended break time with the children, teaching them how to do the Macarena, challenging them in a pull-up competition and teaching them traditional campfire songs. Students then taught the volunteers how to count to 10 in Swahili.
The school day then ended with a game of football, volunteers vs Zanzibar.
Fuoni School
This summer, Fuoni welcomed two groups of volunteers, who made a lasting impact on our classroom renovation project there. The first group relayed the corridor floor and then the second group relayed the floor in a classroom.
Volunteers also helped to construct a drain for the handwashing stations to reduce the risk of stagnant water building up around them.
Kijito Upele School
Zanzibar has a limited infrastructure for the disposal of waste, which results in rubbish being left in large piles. Kijito School has a large amount of rubbish left around the back of the school, which creates unsanitary conditions for the students and teachers.
Volunteers worked together to construct a permanent bin, where rubbish can be disposed of safely.
Over the summer, two groups continued to improve the learning environment for over 5,340 students by painting five classrooms and relaying the floor in two classrooms.
Thank you to all our volunteers who were part of our 2025 summer programme and helped to make a long-term sustainable impact at our partner schools.
