We invite you to explore our volunteer abroad projects in Kenya! This East African country is a favorite travel destination – and for good reason. It has some of the best wildlife viewing on the continent, striking scenery (including the Maasai Mara), and proud traditional tribes. A great way to experience this soulful country is by doing volunteer work. At African Impact, we’re excited to offer some unique volunteer opportunities in Kenya; as an intern, you can support big cat conservation programs, join reforestation efforts, or offer medical support in communities. Whatever you choose, volunteering in Kenya will be a highly rewarding travel adventure.
Limuru, Kenya
Every Monday
Impact: Healthcare
Maasai Mara, Kenya
Every second Monday
Impact: Wildlife Conservation
A country that is as diverse as it is beautiful, Kenya is the ultimate location to begin a life-changing volunteer journey in Africa. With world-renowned sites like the Maasai Mara Game Reserve on your doorstep, volunteering in Kenya is the adventure of a lifetime, filled with rich cultural exchanges, incredible wildlife encounters, and powerful opportunities to make an impact. Our volunteer opportunities in Kenya operate primarily in two stunning locations.
Located on the edge of the legendary Maasai Mara Game Reserve, the Naboisho Conservancy is a conservation area like no other. Boasting one of the highest lion population densities in Africa – with the largest pride in the Greater Mara Area calling the Conservancy home – opportunities for incredible wildlife encounters are abundant.
This exclusive game reserve is not open to the public and follows strict guidelines on the number of individuals let into the park at any given time. These policies ensure the safety and well-being of the wildlife in the area and make for some bucket-list wildlife viewing opportunities! With high populations of lions, cheetahs, leopards, giraffes, elephants, and many more animals roaming free between the fenceless border the Conservancy shares with Maasai Mara, those wanting to volunteer work in Kenya with animals can expect incredible encounters with some of Africa’s most iconic animals.
The Naboisho Conservancy operates on a sustainable business model, working closely with Maasai leaders to ensure environmental and community sustainability in the area. The majority of the Conservancy’s guides are graduates of the Koiyaki Guiding School, which trains Maasai warriors to become safari guides and is a project that volunteers at the Conservancy regularly support. With a portion of the funds generated from the reserve channelled back into the community economy, staying at the Naboisho Conservancy is a high-impact, once-in-a-lifetime wildlife experience.
On the edge of the infamous Great Rift Valley and an hour away from Naibori, Limuru is a quaint and beautiful tea town. A warm community filled with characteristically kind locals, there are many opportunities for volunteers to learn about Kenyan culture in Limuru. Venture into town to try Nyama Choma; a roasted meat dish typically served with Ugali, a corn-flour porridge. Embark on a tour of the many stunning tea plantations in the area to engage your senses and learn about Limuru’s unique history in the tea trade. Join in meaningful conversations with locals to learn about the unique ways of living that makes the Kenyan culture so special.
While you are here, Limuru is an incredible hub to explore all the adventure activities to be had in Kenya. Visit the bustling markets of Nairobi, Kenya’s beautiful capital city. Journey through the Great Rift Valley, a nearby series of trenches filled with spectacular hiking trails that can take you to the heart of some stunning waterfalls. Or, travel to Kenya’s world-renowned beaches for some relaxation after life-changing weeks of volunteer work. Volunteer opportunities to learn, explore, and grow in Limuru are endless.
At African Impact, our mission is to provide the best international volunteer programs in Africa that create real, sustainable impacts on local communities. While our volunteer projects may be unpaid, we absolutely believe they are a life-changing experience for volunteers and locals alike!
As an African-based company, we know first hand the incredible adventures available on our stunning continent. We live and breathe all things African travel and are passionate about immersing volunteers in the heart of some of Africa’s most incredible natural environments and communities. Developing meaningful relationships with locals, learning about unique African cultures, and exploring breath-taking natural wonders, you’ll experience the true spirit of Africa and the people, places, and wildlife that make it so extraordinary.
To us, epic adventures and sustainable impacts go hand-in-hand. We firmly believe in the power of responsible volunteering to positively transform the lives of volunteers and local communities alike. Developing our projects with local community stakeholders, everything we do is measured, designed, and implemented with the community’s goals in mind. As a volunteer joining one of our projects, your work will not only be a life-changing experience for you but make actual, sustainable impacts on the lives of the local community.
This combination of incredible adventures, responsible impacts, and cultural immersion allows us to go beyond the conventional understanding of “volunteering abroad” and offer innovative African volunteer travel experiences that – while unpaid – can truly transform lives!
With many of Africa’s iconic species facing extinction in the next century, there is a great need across Africa for comprehensive conservation efforts that put the lives of wildlife and communities first. Our Big Cat Wildlife Research and Conservation project aims to preserve healthy populations of Africa’s big cats and other wildlife native to the Greater Mara Area by supporting community-run conservation initiatives.
Embarking on daily game drives into the heart of the Naboisho Conservancy, volunteers on these exciting projects will spend their days collecting vital data on the health, populations, and behaviour of wildlife in the area – with a primary focus on lions, leopards, and cheetahs. Working with local researchers, volunteers will then contribute their research to databases that track the conservation trends in the conservancy over time, informing decisions on how to best protect the local wildlife. This immersive Kenyan volunteer program is ideal for anyone looking to step out of their comfort zone and make a difference in the conservation of Africa’s incredible wildlife.
In the past decade, Kenya has experienced extraordinary economic, political, and social development. However, 37% of the population – over 19 million people – still live in poverty today. Our community development volunteer programs in Kenya aim to sustainably support and empower local communities in two critical sectors: positive childhood development and healthcare.
Across Sub-Saharan Africa, healthcare systems are struggling. Often understaffed and underfunded, a lack of resources, trained professionals, and necessary equipment in hospitals makes it difficult for locals to access the care they so desperately need. Our Kenyan medical volunteer programs place volunteers into various clinical environments to assist local staff and expand the reach of care in disadvantaged communities. Volunteers work alongside trained healthcare professionals, creating a rewarding experience to develop clinical skills, learn about global health, and support locals struggling with medical ailments. These high-impact healthcare volunteer opportunities in Kenya are an incredible opportunity to be immersed in a local community and truly, transform lives.
Communities in Kenya often struggle with a disproportionate ratio of trained teachers to eager students. With over 30 students to one teacher, children in Kenya – at no fault of the incredible teachers in these areas – often do not receive the one-on-one attention they need to thrive academically.
Our Kenya volunteering teaching and childcare projects take volunteers into rural schools around Limuru to support local teachers. Volunteering in primary school settings, volunteers work with teachers planning engaging lessons and providing invaluable personal attention to students who appear to be falling behind in class. By going through complex concepts at a slower pace, this individual tutoring can be transformational to a student’s academic journey, helping them excel academically, remain in school, and become life-long learners.
Our Kenya volunteer programs start at $1,370 and increase depending on which project you join and how long you volunteer with us. These costs cover volunteer accommodation, meals, 24/7 in-country support, project and airport transportation, project orientation, and any project equipment volunteers may need.
As a commitment to sustainable development in the communities we work in, all volunteers pay an additional $25 to the African Impact Sustainability Fund. This money goes directly to the African Impact Foundation, which independently ensures the sustainability of our projects in local communities and guarantees impacts continue long after volunteers leave. Learn more about the African Impact Sustainability Fund.
Established in 2004, providing high-quality volunteer experiences in Africa has been in our DNA for 16 years. Our volunteers, staff, and local communities’ safety is our top priority and something that is never compromised. From the moment you arrive in Africa to the end of your adventure, we take the utmost care in ensuring your comfort and safety.
To learn more about our health and safety protocols, please visit the following links. If you have additional questions, we would love to answer them. You can click here to contact us, and one of our team members will be in touch with you shortly!
Eager to join a volunteering project in Kenya with us? Check out some of our award-winning Kenya volunteer projects below!
Big Cat Conservation and Wildlife Research, Naboisho Conservancy
Limuru, Kenya
Every Monday
Impact: Healthcare
Limuru, Kenya
Every Monday
Impact: Healthcare
Limuru, Kenya
Every Monday
Impact: Environmental Sustainability
Maasai Mara, Kenya
Every second Monday
Impact: Wildlife Conservation
