Out in Africa Rural Community Project

	This rural community project is located in the beautiful Transkei area, which is unspoiled and offers volunteers a unique and challenging project in a small rural village. As if time stood still there is no running water or electricity and the pace of life is determined by the weather. Here you can sense the genuine traditional Xhosa culture (indigenous tribe and language) and be part of their lives. Coach sports to children, help them to learn English, work in the communal vegetable gardens and help empower this community.
Minimum Duration:	1 week	Cost:	From R1900 per week
Where?	Gwexintaba, Transkei	Age:	18 years and older

Overview

Day to day activities
With this project you can combine several activities that interest you most. Options are taking on sports activities with the children at one of the primary schools, offering home work guidance, teaching English and growing and maintaining vegetable gardens

What’s included
Accommodation, meals, coordination, cultural excursions

What’s excluded
Flights, visas, insurance, personal luxury items, transport

Working Hours
Flexible

Guaranteed
Working and experiencing township life; learn some basic Xhosa, meet loads of local people and have the possibility to really do what you want to do as a volunteer!

About

Out in Africa in Gwexintaba, is an absolute unique and challenging project situated in the beautiful surroundings of the Transkei. This is one of the few places in South Africa where time stood still.

Up to three years ago there were no formal roads leading here and Gwexintaba was almost inaccessible for the outside world. Here you can sense the genuine traditional Xhosa culture (indigenous tribe and language).

The founder of Out in Africa is Louis, a white South African adventurer who decided to settle in this Xhosa community three years ago. This was a very surprising and unusual act as few white South Africans live in the Transkei. As surprising was the reaction of the local tribal community who gave their consent for him to stay. Louis set up this project with the purpose to uplift and help this community. Out In Africa is not supported by NGO’s and is not subsidized by the government; they depend solely on the aid and donations of volunteers and their network.

Needs

The people of Gwexintaba need all the help they can get. English language deficiency and extreme poverty are examples of the problems the children of Gwexintaba are facing. During your stay at Out In Africa, you can really make a difference in these people’s lives. There is, besides daily aid and assistance, also a need for financial support. Any possible gifts and donations provided by volunteers and their network of people are extremely appreciated. Instead of collecting goods and materials for donation, it is recommended to purchase and donate these on location.

Guidance and Supervision

You can expect daily guidance and supervision from Louis and a local coordinator. Together you will discuss and organize your tasks and duties. They will gladly give you advice and guide you in everything you undertake.

Tasks

Take on sports activities with the children.
Create and construct sport and game facilities.
Offer homework guidance.
Make book covers.
Grow and maintain vegetable garden.
Teach English.
Outings to surrounding villages.

Prerequisites

It is important that volunteers of the Out In Africa Project understand the importance of the following:

Respect the vision and mission of the project.
To show respect towards the people and culture of Gwexintaba.
Able to work independently.
To show flexibility towards responsibilities, tasks and activities.
Cope with primitive lifestyle and housing conditions.

Why?

This project is very diverse and challenging, in which you’ll be dealing with the local community. You will get acquainted with the circumstances in which 70% of South Africans live today, and experience their culture and situation. Be prepared to face misery and poverty, low hygienic standards and an unimaginable difference in culture. For this reason it is of absolute importance that volunteers are independent and mature individuals. Supervision and guidance are always available throughout the voluntary term. Out of Africa promises to be an experience of a lifetime.

Location

Gwexintaba is located an hours’ drive from Port St. Johns, a beautiful coastal village in the Transkei. Gwexintaba is a little village with grass-roofed huts made out of mud. Situated at 3000 ft above sea level, the village is surrounded by amazing vegetation, forest, streams and the awesome Magwa Waterfalls. Only a couple of families reside in Gwexintaba, generation after generation the tribal chief has descended from one of these families. The community has to contend with many challenges; no electricity and no running water is available. The people have to do their washing in the streams and try to provide by cultivating their own crops and keeping small live stock.

Fees and Dates

The following prices include accommodation, meals, daily supervision, and cultural excursions to surrounding villages, nature hikes and transfer from Port St. Johns to Gwexintaba.

The costs are:

1 week R 1750

2 weeks R 3500

All extra weeks will be charged R 1750 per week or R 250 per day.

Please contact us about transfer options.

An extra booking fee of R500 is required if you need Khaya to arrange transfers, accommodation and bus tickets as well as external travel arrangements. This fee lets Khaya handle your travel arrangements completely.

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What do I get for these costs?

Accommodation
Meals
Daily supervision
Cultural excursions to surrounding villages
Nature hikes
Costs exclude the following:
Air tickets
Insurance
Expenses for excursions, trips and activities

The fees will be used for the following:

Upgrading and maintenance of the school
Maintenance of the rondavel used by the volunteers
Expansion and development of vegetable garden
Planting of trees
Providing jobs and income for the local community

Volunteers can start at any given time.

Gallery

Testimonials

Jefferson, U.K
"My memories of Gwexintaba are fond and bring a smile to my soul, the people and their simplicity are refreshing, and reminding me I don’t need much in life to bring happiness to my heart. It was primitive, primal and highlighted the simplicity of the world, a truly magical place."

Christine Carlin, Australia
"It fed my soul"

Carl Mehns
"I think that day all us heard Africa calling! It certainly became a part of my heart and soul and I can’t wait to get back to it"

Jane, U.S.A.
"The unique experience I had in Gwexintaba isn’t comparable with anything else I participated in till this moment. Thank you people of Walmer and thank you Khaya!"

Herman, The Netherlands
"My Out in Africa experience was intensive and reinventing in many ways. This is the perfect place to go if you feel involved with developing communities and really feel how life is in rural Africa! I’m looking forward returning to the project as soon as possible."