The Kilimanjaro region in the North of Tanzania is home to 1.4 million Tanzanians. This is where the organisation “White Orange Youth” (WOY) has been operating since 1998. WOY's major objectives are to empower youth and to prevent HIV/Aids in this region. The organisation conducts classes dealing with HIV/Aids, reproductive health and life skills for young people between 14 and 24 years of age. Furthermore, it organises community events with HIV/Aids related themes, conducts parent to youth health talks and supports the most vulnerable orphans and children so that they can access vocational school education.

With the Tanzanian national elections coming up in 2010, WOY expanded its work in the field of promotion of active citizenship. WOY wants to enable young people to advocate for themselves and to bring forward their own agenda in regards to national politics. The GLEN participants will work in the WOY campaign promoting participation in the elections.

The GLEN participants take an active role in planning and implementing classes and workshops for young people while working hand in hand with the WOY team. They visit schools and youth centres and raise awareness for the possibilities of political participation by showing documentaries, inviting guest speakers, giving space for open discussions and by promoting critical thinking.

For working with the target group, knowledge of Swahili is recommended. The GLEN participants should have knowledge of and experience with interactive teaching methods, organising events, recruiting the youth. It is also very important that the participants have thorough knowledge of political science, human rights and how to motivate youth to participate actively in issues that affect them in the community like ask about the expenditure of the local government and being aware of the importance of voting during elections.

The scheduled time for the internship is August to October 2010.

The training and preparation seminars before the internship take place in English. The GLEN team will be composed of one German and one Swiss participant.

Proposed by: John Kessy (WOY)

People living with disabilities face a lot of difficulties in the Tanzanian society and are often not supported by their families. Both people with disabilities and their families are victims of discrimination and exclusion.

The "MEHAYO Trust Fund" is a private Tanzanian initiative running a home and day-care for mentally handicapped people aged four to 30 in a suburb of Morogoro. Handicapped children receive a basic primary school education as well as trainings to improve their ability to handle their lives and even vocational training and afternoon activities (music, art classes). The main objective of MEHAYO is to enable the affected to conduct self-determined lives. The association organises trainings for animal breeding and cultivation of plants in order to give them ideas for future activities.

The GLEN participants support the work of MEHAYO. Every GLEN participant probably has one or two children to look after as their main responsibility. This means that they work with these children throughout their day, following the guidelines and goals given in the individual plans. The goal is to keep focus on the main areas of development. Additionally, the GLEN participants organise and conduct workshops such as art and crafts, games, music and dance therapy, for the mentally challenged children.

It is essential for the internship that the GLEN participants have experience in working with children and mentally challenged persons and that they are open to do activities with the children (workshops and arts). Agriculture experience to help with the vocational training for MEHAYOs youth or knowledge about financing to help MEHAYO generate sustainable income is also required.

The scheduled time for the internship is three months between mid/end of July and October 2009.

The training and preparation seminars before the internship take place in English. The GLEN team will be composed of one German/Swiss and one Polish participant.

Proposed by: Linda Ngido (MEHAYO) and Lisa Gogolin (GLEN participant 2009)