Why is there a fee to volunteer?

If you have been looking for a volunteer opportunity, you have quickly realised that there is usually a fee attached and you are probably wondering why if you are already donating your time.

We value your donation of time and want you to feel appreciated. However, there is a cost to hosting volunteers that most projects and non profits cannot afford unless they are very well funded (which in return would mean that they don’t need the volunteers as much anyhow)

We believe that volunteers need to be guided and taken care of by a local team in order to ensure that we are responsible volunteers.

What is included in the volunteer fee?

Your volunteer fee includes airport transfers, accommodation at the volunteer hostel with breakfast and dinner from Monday to Saturday, as well as pre-arrival preparation, orientation and coordination of your program. While you are in Kenya, we are available 24/7 to answer queries, or get you out of any trouble you get yourself into :)

Check out the fees here

Other than to host and pay for expenses, where is the money going?

Marafiki Community International is a non profit registered with the NGO Coordination Board in Kenya, and as such, we cover the administration costs and expenses and anything that is left is destined to one of our projects

There are months when we have a lot of volunteers where we are able to support our projects and our partnerships more and plan for the months when we have less volunteers. Like any non profit or business, it is all a balancing act :)

What if I can’t make it, will my fee be refunded?

We understand that life isn’t straight forward at times, and so, this is how we operate.

• If you cancel more than 90 days from the booking start date we will give you a 100% refund - Keep in mind that 90 prior to your trip, you are supposed to make a 50% fee payment.

• If you cancel less than 90 days before your start date, but more than 30 days before your start date, we will give you a refund of 50% of your fee - remember that your full fee is due 30 days before your start date, and chances are you won’t have completed the payment yet.

• If you cancel less than 30 days before the start date, we do not issue refunds. However, we are happy to hold your fee for 6 months at no extra cost.

• Once the program commences we do not issue refunds.