Public Healthcare Volunteer Project in Zambia
VOLUNTEER
MEDICAL
Experience grassroots healthcare in action in Livingstone
Support local healthcare initiatives in a Zambian community where extra hands truly matter. This project places you alongside clinic staff and community caregivers, assisting with basic medical support, home-based care visits, and youth health education. From busy mornings in local clinics to afternoons spent working with school groups, you’ll gain hands-on insight into grassroots healthcare while building meaningful connections with patients and families. You’ll be based in Livingstone, a vibrant town best known for its proximity to the iconic Victoria Falls and its welcoming community atmosphere. Living here gives you the chance to experience everyday life beyond the tourist highlights, combining meaningful volunteer work with the opportunity to explore one of Southern Africa’s most exciting destinations.
Project highlights
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Gain insights into community healthcare
Work alongside local healthcare professionals and see how clinics operate in a resource-limited setting.
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Learn from local medical teams
Observe and understand how healthcare providers adapt to community needs and practical challenges.
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Build confidence and skills
Develop communication skills, professionalism, and cultural awareness in a real healthcare setting.
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Make Livingstone your home
Become part of a volunteer family and a welcoming Zambian community.
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Have an adventure
Go on game drives, take a sunset cruise on the Zambezi, and (if you’re brave) do a bungee-jump.
Available: Year Round
Duration: 2 Weeks+
Price From $1,950 This cost covers your accommodation, meals, project fees, transfers, 24/7 support and in-country orientation.
What You’ll Do
COMMUNITY
Home-Based Care
You’ll join local caregivers on visits to patients in their homes, offering a more personal side of community healthcare. As a volunteer, you’ll assist with taking basic vital signs, support simple wound care under supervision, distribute approved basic medication such as vitamins or oral rehydration salts, and help record health data for follow-up care. These visits give you insight into the wider factors that affect health, from living conditions to access to resources. You’ll build meaningful connections while learning how preventative care and regular monitoring can improve long-term well-being within the community.
U.N. SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS
Good Health & Well-being | Quality Education
Good Health & Well-being | Quality Education
COMMUNITY
Clinic Support
As a medical volunteer, you’ll also spend time working in local clinics alongside qualified nurses and healthcare staff. You’ll help take blood pressure and temperature readings, support patient intake, and assist with documentation so clinics can run more efficiently. In an Under-5 clinic, you may help weigh babies, monitor growth, and record developmental progress. By supporting these essential tasks, you allow medical staff to focus on more complex cases while gaining practical exposure to how public healthcare operates in Zambia.
U.N. SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS
Good Health & Well-being | Quality Education
Good Health & Well-being | Quality Education
COMMUNITY
Health & Community Education
You’ll support preventative healthcare by helping deliver interactive Health Club sessions in local schools. Topics may include hygiene, nutrition, HIV awareness, mental health, and disease prevention. You’ll assist in preparing lesson materials and may lead parts of sessions as your confidence grows. In the afternoons, you can also get involved in wider community initiatives such as Reading Club, Math Club, Eco Club, Art Club, or sports activities, contributing to overall youth development and reinforcing the link between education and health.
U.N. SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS
Good Health & Well-being | Quality Education
Good Health & Well-being | Quality Education
What You'll Take Home
Why This Project Suits You
If you’re considering a future in healthcare or public health, this project offers valuable exposure to real-world systems in a community setting. You don’t need prior medical qualifications, just empathy, adaptability, and a willingness to learn.
By the end of your stay, you’ll have:
Gained practical experience in a public healthcare setting
Developed confidence interacting with patients and families
Learned basic clinical support skills, such as taking vitals and documentation
Understood how community outreach supports preventative healthcare
Built cross-cultural communication skills in a meaningful setting
Example Weekly Schedule
Monday
Breakfast
07:00 – 07:40
Morning
08:00 – 11.00 | Home Based Care
In the mornings, volunteers visit different communities around Livingstone to provide home-based care, assisting patients with tasks such as dressing wounds, administering basic medication, taking vitals, and providing healthcare education. Caregivers familiar with the area accompany the volunteers and provide translation support when needed. At least once a week, volunteers also assist at the clinic, supporting nurses with tasks such as helping at the under-five clinic by weighing babies and documenting their growth, taking vitals, or observing the clinical officer.
11:00 – 12:00 | Back at the Volunteer House
The volunteers have free time to read a book, go to the supermarket
Lunch
12:00 – 12:30
Afternoon
12:30 – 13:00 | Preparation time
The volunteers prepare for the afternoon activities together with the staff, ensuring that everyone is fully prepared and understands their role for the afternoon. At times, they also help make peanut butter sandwiches and juice for the students.
13:00 – 16:00 | Community project
Each day, the volunteers visit a different community project. These may include Eco Club, Math Club, Reading Club, Girl Impact, Rugby, Health Club, and others. Teaching volunteers are mixed with those working in medical, education, or sports roles to create a balanced team.
16:00 – 16:30 | Back at the Volunteer House
A Monday meeting is held with the entire team to get to know one another, review the weekly plan, and share any additional announcements.
Dinner
18:00 – 18:30
Evening
18:30 – Onwards | Free night
Easy night for all the volunteers.
Tuesday
Breakfast
07:00 – 07:40
Morning
08:00 – 11:00 | Home Based Care
In the mornings, volunteers visit different communities around Livingstone to provide home-based care, assisting patients with tasks such as dressing wounds, administering basic medication, taking vitals, and providing healthcare education. Caregivers familiar with the area accompany the volunteers and provide translation support when needed. At least once a week, volunteers also assist at the clinic, supporting nurses with tasks such as helping at the under-five clinic by weighing babies and documenting their growth, taking vitals, or observing the clinical officer.
11:00 – 12:00 | Back at the Volunteer House
Volunteers receive an activities talk from Victoria Falls Backpackers, after which they can book their weekend activities.
Lunch
12:00 – 12:30
Afternoon
12:30 – 13:00 | Preparation time
The volunteers prepare for the afternoon activities together with the staff, ensuring that everyone is fully prepared and understands their role for the afternoon. At times, they also help make peanut butter sandwiches and juice for the students.
13:00 – 16:00 | Community project
Each day, the volunteers visit a different community project. These may include Eco Club, Math Club, Reading Club, Girl Impact, Rugby, Health Club, and others. Teaching volunteers are mixed with those working in medical, education, or sports roles to create a balanced team.
16:00 – 16:30 | Back at the Volunteer House
Free time for everyone until dinner.
Dinner
18:00 – 18:30
Evening
18:30 – Onwards | Movie night
Today the volunteers have a movie night in the volunteer house.
Wednesday
Breakfast
07:00 – 07:40
Morning
08:00 – 11:00 | Home Based Care
In the mornings, volunteers visit different communities around Livingstone to provide home-based care, assisting patients with tasks such as dressing wounds, administering basic medication, taking vitals, and providing healthcare education. Caregivers familiar with the area accompany the volunteers and provide translation support when needed. At least once a week, volunteers also assist at the clinic, supporting nurses with tasks such as helping at the under-five clinic by weighing babies and documenting their growth, taking vitals, or observing the clinical officer.
11:00 – 12:00 | Back at the Volunteer House
A language lesson is held, during which a staff member teaches the volunteers some basic Nyanja phrases.
Lunch
12:00 – 12:30
Afternoon
12:30 – 13:00 | Preparation time
The volunteers prepare for the afternoon activities together with the staff, ensuring that everyone is fully prepared and understands their role for the afternoon. At times, they also help make peanut butter sandwiches and juice for the students.
13:00 – 16:00 | Community project
Each day, the volunteers visit a different community project. These may include Eco Club, Math Club, Reading Club, Girl Impact, Rugby, Health Club, and others. Teaching volunteers are mixed with those working in medical, education, or sports roles to create a balanced team.
16:00 – 16:30 | Back at the Volunteer House
Dinner
18:00 – 18:30
Evening
18:30 – Onwards | Games night
The team either play games in the volunteer house or they go to a pub quiz in town.
Thursday
Breakfast
07:00 – 07:40
Morning
08:00 – 11:00 | Home Based Care
In the mornings, volunteers visit different communities around Livingstone to provide home-based care, assisting patients with tasks such as dressing wounds, administering basic medication, taking vitals, and providing healthcare education. Caregivers familiar with the area accompany the volunteers and provide translation support when needed. At least once a week, volunteers also assist at the clinic, supporting nurses with tasks such as helping at the under-five clinic by weighing babies and documenting their growth, taking vitals, or observing the clinical officer.
11:00 – 12:00 | Back at the Volunteer House
The volunteers have free time to read a book, go to the supermarket.
Lunch
12:00 – 12:30
Afternoon
12:30 – 13:00 | Preparation time
The volunteers prepare for the afternoon activities together with the staff, ensuring that everyone is fully prepared and understands their role for the afternoon. At times, they also help make peanut butter sandwiches and juice for the students.
13:00 – 16:00 | Village tour
Every volunteer has the opportunity to take part in the Village Tour, which is organized by the women of the local women’s group. This tour serves as an income-generating activity for the group while allowing volunteers to visit and experience two different communities around Livingstone. Volunteers also get to taste local snacks. If a volunteer has already participated in the Village Tour the previous week, they instead take part in a community project.
16:30 – 18:00 | Back at the Volunteer House
Dinner
18:00 – 18:30
Evening
18:30 | Free night
Volunteers can chill at the volunteer house and play games with each other or read a book.
Friday
Breakfast
07:00 – 07:40
Morning
08:00 – 11:00 | Home Based Care
In the mornings, volunteers visit different communities around Livingstone to provide home-based care, assisting patients with tasks such as dressing wounds, administering basic medication, taking vitals, and providing healthcare education. Caregivers familiar with the area accompany the volunteers and provide translation support when needed. At least once a week, volunteers also assist at the clinic, supporting nurses with tasks such as helping at the under-five clinic by weighing babies and documenting their growth, taking vitals, or observing the clinical officer.
11:00 – 12:00 | Back at the Volunteer House
The volunteers have free time to read a book, go to the supermarket etc.
12:00 – 12:30 | Friday check-in
Before lunch, a “Friday Check-In” is held. During this session, volunteers are asked for feedback on the week, informed of any maintenance in the house, updated on the weekend plans, and briefed on any new arrivals.
Lunch
12:30 – 13:30 | Cultural meal
Afternoon
13:30 – 16:00 | Cultural afternoon
Volunteers gather in the boma at the backpackers, where one or two staff members give a talk about Zambia. The session includes time for questions and answers, followed by a “mock wedding,” in which two volunteers are playfully married to demonstrate a traditional Zambian wedding. Afterward, everyone participates in drumming and dancing together. If a volunteer has already attended the cultural afternoon the previous week, they instead take part in a community project.
16:00 – 18:00 | Back at the Volunteer House
Dinner
18:00 – 18:30
Evening
18:30 – Onwards | Free night
Volunteers can chill at the volunteer house and play games with each other or read a book.
Project Location
Livingstone, Zambia
Livingstone: Life on the Zambezi
Set on the banks of the Zambezi River, and a short drive from the mighty Victoria Falls, Livingstone is a town that perfectly balances adventure, culture, and everyday life in Zambia. It has a warm, welcoming energy, with friendly locals, colorful markets, and a relaxed pace that makes it easy to settle in. Outside of your volunteer hours, there’s plenty to see and do. You can spot hippos and crocodiles while taking a boat trip on the Zambezi, walk the paths around impressive Victoria Falls, or go for a game drive in the local game reserve. For those seeking adventure, options include white-water rafting and bungee jumping.
Weekend activity options include:
- Visit the iconic Victoria Falls and take in its incredible power
- Take a sunset cruise on the Zambezi River, surrounded by hippos and crocodiles
- Explore Livingstone’s local markets, shops, and cafés
- Go on a day safari in nearby national parks to spot wildlife
- Try adventure activities like bungee jumping, zip-lining, or white-water rafting
Accommodation
Your home during the project is a simple, comfortable volunteer house in Livingstone, designed to give you everything you need while staying immersed in local life. You’ll share rooms with other volunteers, each equipped with basic furnishings, fans, and secure storage. Bathrooms and showers are shared, and communal areas provide space to relax and connect.
There is also a pool for you to unwind during hot days. The house is within easy reach of the clinics, schools, and local amenities, so it’s easy to balance project work with downtime and explore the town at your own pace. Staying here also gives you the chance to experience daily life in Livingstone alongside other volunteers and local staff.
Meals are prepared on-site by our local team and give a taste of Zambian cuisine alongside familiar, international options. Expect wholesome breakfasts to start your day, filling lunches during project hours, and warm, home-cooked dinners in the evenings. Ingredients are fresh and locally sourced, and dietary needs can usually be accommodated with prior notice. Weekends offer the chance to try local cafés, markets, or cook together with fellow volunteers, making meals not just nourishing but also a social and cultural experience.
You’ll be supported by an experienced local team who oversee daily project activities, training, and volunteer wellbeing. They provide orientation on arrival, guide you through your volunteer work, and are available for advice and support throughout your stay. The team also helps you understand local culture and customs, ensuring your work is respectful, effective, and a positive experience for both you and the community.
Staying in Livingstone, you’ll have access to Wi-Fi at the volunteer house, though note speeds can vary. Local SIM cards with data are inexpensive and widely available, allowing you to stay connected while out in the community. Power outages can occasionally occur, which is part of life here, so having a charged power bank and some flexibility is useful.
Volunteer safety is a top priority. You’ll receive a full induction covering health precautions, local customs, and emergency procedures. During clinic visits and home-based care, staff ensure activities are conducted safely and responsibly. The volunteer house is in a secure area, and staff are available 24/7 in case of emergencies. Simple precautions like staying hydrated, protecting yourself from the sun, and following local guidance will help ensure your experience is both safe and enjoyable.
Accommodation
Your home during the project is a simple, comfortable volunteer house in Livingstone, designed to give you everything you need while staying immersed in local life. You’ll share rooms with other volunteers, each equipped with basic furnishings, fans, and secure storage. Bathrooms and showers are shared, and communal areas provide space to relax and connect.
There is also a pool for you to unwind during hot days. The house is within easy reach of the clinics, schools, and local amenities, so it’s easy to balance project work with downtime and explore the town at your own pace. Staying here also gives you the chance to experience daily life in Livingstone alongside other volunteers and local staff.
The Meals
Meals are prepared on-site by our local team and give a taste of Zambian cuisine alongside familiar, international options. Expect wholesome breakfasts to start your day, filling lunches during project hours, and warm, home-cooked dinners in the evenings. Ingredients are fresh and locally sourced, and dietary needs can usually be accommodated with prior notice. Weekends offer the chance to try local cafés, markets, or cook together with fellow volunteers, making meals not just nourishing but also a social and cultural experience.
Support Team
You’ll be supported by an experienced local team who oversee daily project activities, training, and volunteer wellbeing. They provide orientation on arrival, guide you through your volunteer work, and are available for advice and support throughout your stay. The team also helps you understand local culture and customs, ensuring your work is respectful, effective, and a positive experience for both you and the community.
Safety
Volunteer safety is a top priority. You’ll receive a full induction covering health precautions, local customs, and emergency procedures. During clinic visits and home-based care, staff ensure activities are conducted safely and responsibly. The volunteer house is in a secure area, and staff are available 24/7 in case of emergencies. Simple precautions like staying hydrated, protecting yourself from the sun, and following local guidance will help ensure your experience is both safe and enjoyable.
Connectivity
Staying in Livingstone, you’ll have access to Wi-Fi at the volunteer house, though note speeds can vary. Local SIM cards with data are inexpensive and widely available, allowing you to stay connected while out in the community. Power outages can occasionally occur, which is part of life here, so having a charged power bank and some flexibility is useful.
Pricing
Rates
| Duration | Program Fee |
|---|---|
| 2 weeks | $1,950 ($975 per week) |
| 3 weeks | $2,800 ($934 per week) |
| 4 weeks | $3,650 ($913 per week) |
| 5 weeks | $4,500 ($900 per week) |
| 6 weeks | $5,350 ($892 per week) |
| 8 weeks | $7,050 ($882 per week) |
| 10 weeks | $8,750 ($875 per week) |
| 12 weeks | $10,450 ($871 per week) |
| 2 weeks | £1,560 (£780 per week) |
| 3 weeks | £2,240 (£747 per week) |
| 4 weeks | £2,920 (£730 per week) |
| 5 weeks | £3,600 (£720 per week) |
| 6 weeks | £4,280 (£714 per week) |
| 8 weeks | £5,640 (£705 per week) |
| 10 weeks | £7,000 (£700 per week) |
| 12 weeks | £8,360 (£697 per week) |
| 2 weeks | €1,794 (€897 per week) |
| 3 weeks | €2,576 (€859 per week) |
| 4 weeks | €3,358 (€840 per week) |
| 5 weeks | €4,140 (€828 per week) |
| 6 weeks | €4,922 (€821 per week) |
| 8 weeks | €6,486 (€811 per week) |
| 10 weeks | €8,050 (€805 per week) |
| 12 weeks | €9,614 (€802 per week) |
| 2 weeks | $2,886 ($1,443 per week) |
| 3 weeks | $4,144 ($1,382 per week) |
| 4 weeks | $5,402 ($1,351 per week) |
| 5 weeks | $6,660 ($1,332 per week) |
| 6 weeks | $7,918 ($1,320 per week) |
| 8 weeks | $10,434 ($1,305 per week) |
| 10 weeks | $12,950 ($1,295 per week) |
| 12 weeks | $15,466 ($1,289 per week) |
Inclusions
- Backpacker style accommodation with swimming pool
- Breakfast, lunch and dinner (Mon - Fri)
- Airport transfers on arrival and departure
- All project transport, equipment and resources
- Support from experienced local and international African Impact staff
- Full orientation for responsible project contribution
Exclusions
- Flights
- Visas
- Insurance
- Weekend tours
- Personal expenses
Requirements
- The minimum age to join this project is 18 years old
- The minimum stay for this project is 2 weeks
Flights & Arrivals
Arrive at Harry Mwanga Nkumbula (Livingstone) International Airport (LVI) on your Monday start date, landing between 9am and 6pm in order to make the complimentary transfer service. Look for the African Impact sign – a friendly face will be there to welcome you!
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Project faqs
What qualifications do you need to become a public health volunteer?
We place each volunteer in a healthcare setting in Zambia that perfectly suits their education, previous experience, interests, and the local community’s needs. We’ve welcomed everyone from nursing students, recently graduated doctors to experienced healthcare professionals in the past. If you have any questions about qualifications for volunteer opportunities, please contact us.
What are the benefits of becoming a community medical volunteer?
As a community medical volunteer in Zambia, you’ll be making real, transformative impacts on the lives of the local community members in desperate need of medical attention. Working alongside local doctors and nurses and gaining invaluable professional experience in global healthcare practices, this is an adventure like no other, powerfully transforming you and the local community alike.
What ethical considerations are in place to ensure I am providing appropriate support during my public health placement?
We prioritise ethical and responsible volunteering practices through all our placements. You’ll never be expected to perform tasks beyond your training or qualifications, and our experienced program coordinators will closely supervise your involvement. We emphasise cultural sensitivity and respect for local customs and traditions throughout your placement. Additionally, we have established strong partnerships with local healthcare facilities, ensuring your contributions align with their existing needs and complement the work of qualified professionals.
Our favourite weekend activities in Zambia
Africa’s adventure capital offers no shortage of ways to spend your weekends as a volunteer. There’s something for everyone – from the adrenaline junkie to culturally intrigued traveller.
