Program Reviews

Volunteering with African Impact is the best thing I have ever done and I can't wait to go back as soon as possible! The projects are organised really well, they keep you busy when you are there but thats the whole reason of volunteering right? Sustainability is really important to African Impact and thats clear in each project I was involved in. The more you put in to the projects the more you get out, thee most rewarding thing I've ever done.

Monday to Friday you're busy on projects from 8:30am till around 4pm, coming home for a delicious cooked lunch in between. In your spare time you get to see more of this beautiful part of the world and get to make friends for life with the other wonderful volunteers and the AMAZING African Impact staff.

The co-ordinators and other staff members are just brilliant, a total inspiration and are always there when you need them. The house where you stay is really lovely and the meals the zulu ladies cook are DELICIOUS!

Volunteering with African Impact is a fantastic experience, you get to see a different part of the world, immerse yourself in a different culture, help those less fortunate than you and develop yourself as person as a result.

When I came to saint lucia, I was already super excited about the program from what I saw and read on the website. From the moment I landed in Africa until the moment I left i felt very welcomed. The staff was amazing and very fun to be around. They helped me out and were always there to answer questions if needed. All three projects are amazing and the dearest to my heart was the medical project. What hit me the most is how appreciative and thankful the zulu people were. One thing I will never forget was how respectful and thankful lady with the tumor husband was to us when he saw the great recovery of his wife. He offered us a chicken! simple act of kindness gone a long way to affect people's life. Nothing more precious in life to see the smiles of these kids after you read a book with them. The three weeks I spent in Africa really affected my daily life when I came back and made me appreciate life much more. The program was amazing, I felt the support and the love of the volunteers to each other and to the people they help out. I will be coming back for sure!! Amazing experience, won't mind spending all my money to do it again!

I was a medical volunteer for 3 months on the St Lucia projects and it was amazing! The staff are so friendly and welcoming and are always there for you if you need help or you're not sure about something. The projects themselves are so fulfilling, whether its reading a book with a child or providing them with nutritional Epap, you can see the differences you are making. The people out in the communities are so loving and welcoming, they take you into their homes where they have nothing and still they want to give food to you, as a thank you for your help.

The house is very nice, yes you do have to share a room, but you get used to it quickly. The food is done on a three week menu and is perfectly nice, you only eat one Zulu meal a week, which is actually quite tasty!

If you're thinking about volunteering, definietly do it. I'm so glad I did and this organisation is a perfect way to help give back to the community. They have such amazing links within the community, with the Zulu staff and leaders, everything you do feels worthwhile. Even if its helping someone wash plates you know you've helped them out for that day.

My 2 weeks spent with African Impact in St Lucia were awesome. The team of staff and volunteers were so supportive, knowledgeable and encouraging. I really enjoyed all of the projects that I was involved in, especially brick building, holiday club, reading club and the Support Groups. The experience of working alongside members of the Zulu communities is second to none. The accommodation and food provided was superb and made the whole trip very comfortable in comparison to previous trips to Africa. I really would recommend African Impact, especially to those who enjoy meeting new people and making a noticeable difference to people's lives. The staff dealt with any problems that arose in an incredibly professional manner, maintaining the safety and well-being of volunteers at all times. Thank you very much African Impact for a brilliant time!

I spent 2 weeks volunteering for African Impact in St Lucia, South Africa on their Community Project and it was one of the most rewarding experiences of my life! The volunteer house was brilliant and comfortable - absolute luxury compared to some places I have stayed in other parts of Africa where we had cold outdoor showers, long drop toilets and no electricity. The food was great - always enough, extremely varied (definitely not just rice and veg) and able to cater for a whole range of dietary requirements including one fellow volunteer who was both a vegan and ate Kosher! The staff were always very friendly, supportive and knowledgeable as were the other volunteers. The project itself was wonderful because we got to do a whole range of things that not only took into account an individual's skills but allowed them to develop new ones. For example, I never thought I would be able to make concrete and bricks by hand, and now I can! I loved being able to get to know members of the community and the gratitude they showed us for something as simple as weeding their garden was humbling. I truly believe that all the African Impact projects in St Lucia are making a difference in the surrounding communities and I would thoroughly recommend African Impact to anyone, regardless of age or skill.

I wish that I had better things to say about African Impact. I did not have a good experience with them, in many ways. First of all, the volunteer house itself is in need of repair. The showers were very unreliable and many people ended up finishing their showers in the sink. The food was low in nutritional value overall (rice and frozen veg was the regular meal) and generally very spicy. On the medical program, there was simply not enough for the volunteers to do, so we would be sent out in 4's to check on one person. The idea was to get quality time with the patient, but really it was just the Zulu social worker doing all of the communication, so the volunteers were left just to sit and stare at the person. Not exactly what I had in mind when I signed up for this experience. This leads me to believe that they are more interested in getting the money from the volunteers more than creating significant change or a valuable experience, at least for the medical part of the program. I began to disagree with management after they changed my assignment without my input. I specialize in teaching Human Sexuality and they gave the HIV class to people who had no training or knowledge of HIV, and no special desire to do the class. They were just randomly assigned the task. I didn't take this well and started to get depressed and sullen. The worst part came when, after 3 weeks of working with them, I was roused out of bed and told I had been terminated from the program. The initial reason was due to a stupid, generalized joke I posted on Facebook about smothering people, but then stated the official reason was that I had revealed, in an email to the lead coordinator, that I had an anxiety disorder (citing that as why I had trouble discussing with them that I was so unhappy with the recent change). I was told that I had not listed that on my application, so that was grounds for immediate termination. This was after a night of program sponsored drinking, so I was not in the place to take this well either. I left, even though they gave me the option of staying, in separate quarters--like a criminal. They put me in a very dangerous position, drunk, alone, having a full-blown panic attack on the darkened streets of St. Lucia . They did try to offer suggestions of hostels, but if you've ever had a panic attack, you know that it's unbelievably difficult to focus on anything besides the anxiety. I was rescued by a local woman and after a few days, I took responsibility for my actions and sent an email to them apologizing for my part in things and asked to come back. If you are interested in volunteering abroad, you want to do the work. That's why you're there and that's what I wanted to do. I wanted to finish the work that I started. I was denied that chance with no explanation of why. The majority of the coordinators are incredibly young and inexperienced. If you are over the age of 25 and have any actual skills that you want to employ, this is not the program for you. This rash decision, coupled with my own ill conceived behavior, has costs me almost $1,000, since I had to find my own lodging, food, and way back to Durban, 3 hours away. I am a school teacher and do not have that kind of extra cash, especially after paying $5,000 for the experience in the first place. I'm afraid this has killed any motivation for me to volunteer abroad or to encourage others to do so. That's probably the saddest outcome of all. I do want to note that this is not my first review of this organization. I was contacted by the lead coordinator and pressured to take down my initial feedback. This tells me that they are not interested in receiving honest feedback or others knowing their serious flaws.

I was a medical volunteer in St Lucia, and it was the best experience of my life. When i got to St. Lucia, everyone was so welcoming from the program that it made me feel like home in the first week. i can guarantee anyone that goes that they are going to love it there. The Zulu ladies that work with us are also amazing and they are really funny and lovely. The projects that i was on was clinic, home based care, home assistance, 10 families and then i was also rotated with projects from the education program and the community program so you can still try every project if that is what you want. Being a medical volunteer you can get attached to the patients and i am going to keep in contact with African Impact to ask about them. The food was really good too, and very healthy! Overall it was an amazing experience, and even if there is a post below that says "avoid", ignore that completely because i was with her during her stay and i had so much fun and i absolutely loved it.

I was on the education project in St. Lucia for 2 months, and it was easily the best experience I have ever had. I had a lot of expectations coming in, and I they were all exceeded. The staff is extremely kind and always willing to help. You can tell that they love what they do and truly believe in it. From the beginning of my trip, they made me feel extremely comfortable and at home. Since I was on the education project I participated in teaching at the creches, reading club, after school club, holiday club, adult english classes and other community projects such as gardening and brick building. I could tell that the different projects we take part in really do make a difference in the communities, especially since I was there for 2 months. I can't choose a favorite project, but I really loved reading club and holiday club. I feel like I really got to know these kids, and they had a huge impact on me. One of the things that was really cool is when people in the community talked about how much African Impact means to them, and how it has affected their lives. One experience that was really cool was when a kid wrote a poem about African Impact. That's when you know that the work you are doing is affecting people's lives. I will never forget the experiences that I had here, and I hope that I will return soon.

can't even begin to explain how amazing my time with the St. Lucia team was. The staff were so helpful and knowledgeable, and an absolute laugh! I had a great group of volunteers to work with, from all over the world. It was so rewarding teaching the children everyday and seeing them learn and respond, playing the hilarious apple game! I got to help teach English to adults within the community, partake in gardening, as well as having the absolute joy of working with and seeing the growth of the inkanyezi crèche, a look in at what the medical volunteers get up to in the clinic. It was the most insightful and -as cliché as it is- life changing experience to date. It's opened my eyes to so much and really broadened my prospects and aims for the future. There is no doubt in my mind that I will be coming back, hopefully to St. Lucia, as well as more of my beautiful home country. I cannot recommend African Impact enough. 10/10

This was the perfect opportunity for me to learn about a possible future career as well as the chance to explore the stunning Cape Town.

The accommodation and staff are wonderful. The best part was living with people from all over the world and making new friends who I have already seen and stayed in touch with since returning home.

The office is welcoming and offer you all the support you need. The day to day tasks included working closely with the Marketing Manager to update all of the online listings, create marketing material, support staff with marketing duties all over Africa and promote the numerous projects that African Impact have to offer. It will make you want to volunteer on each one.

You will fall in love with the people and the country. I wish I never had to leave.