At GIVE INTERNATIONAL, we care greatly for your personal development, well-being, and safety during your time volunteering with us. While volunteering on a GIVE project, you have the assurance of a safe and meaningful project, developed by experienced professionals and local knowledge.

Volunteer Health What inoculations or medicines do I need? As soon as GIVE can confirm your acceptance in the program, it is imperative that you determine which inoculations you still need, and where you can obtain them. For Kenya/Uganda, you will need to make an appointment with your local travel clinic at least 4-8 weeks prior to your departure to make sure you are inoculated with the following: a) Hepatitis A b) Typhoid c) Yellow Fever d) Polio e) Hepatitis B Secondly, volunteers should make sure their immunizations for the following are still valid: a) Tetanus-Diptheria b) Rabies c) Measles-Mumps-Rubella d) Varicella Thirdly, volunteers will need an anti-malaria prophylaxis with Larium, Malarone, or Doxycycline. Your local travel clinic will be able to assist you with all the information needed for these inoculations and medications.

What if I get sick during my placement?
Your local GIVE project coordinator is well trained in how to handle medical emergencies and will ensure that you are well cared for. Although only needed in extreme emergencies, there is an excellent AAR Health Clinic and International Air Ambulance less than 20 minutes from your (individual) placement location, and GIVE INTERNATIONAL has an excellent relationship with them.

Volunteer Safety

GIVE volunteers live and work in some of the poorest regions on earth, and we encourage passionate and adventurous individuals to accept this challenge. Obviously, there are certain inherent risks involved within this type of work, but we do our best to prepare our volunteers for these challenges. In fact, apart from the occasional travelers' diarreah and sprained ankle, we have never had a serious incident or injury.

Does GIVE have an emergency contingency plan?
Yes, all GIVE volunteer placements have an established and recognized contingency plan to deal with emergencies, and should it prove necessary, volunteers will be evacuated from the area that they are in. Fortunately, most GIVE placements are in rural areas, and these areas are usually the safest places to be in times of unrest. In addition, GIVE INTERNATIONAL representatives keep in close contact with the Canadian High Commission and US Embassy, along with other non-governmental organizations working within the same regions.

Are East Africans friendly?
Interestingly, when past volunteers have filled out their post-trip evaluation forms, over 95% have mentioned that they found their placement to be, "considerably safer and the local people to be significantly more friendly" than they had originally anticipated.

We believe that our extensive background in Uganda/Kenya and our excellent safety record, are a direct result of the extreme care and attention our in-country representatives put into inspecting your accommodations, volunteer programs, in-country transportation, and volunteer placement locations. Obviously no one can ever be 100% safe anywhere in the world, but we believe our track record and attention to safety speak for themselves.