Jambo! The first few days of our Robertson Trust Tanzania Twenty (T20) Home-Building Expedition in Tanzania have been very busy and lots of fun! On Sunday, we visited Moshi Christian Children's Centre, where we were greeted by some beautiful singing and dancing, and enjoyed playing games with the children. Monday was our first day on the home-building worksites. We divided into two teams, with half of the group travelling to the site of James Chonjo and his brother Fabian's new home, while the others broke ground on a new house for Efata and her family. We also visited our local partners, Tanzania Women Research Foundation…

Vine Trust volunteer, Dr Jenny Langdon, speaks to BBC Radio Berkshire's Anne Diamond about the Jubilee Hope programme on Lake Victoria, Tanzania. Listen to Jenny's interview: www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p04hd0qm

Like me, you may have worked on board Amazon Hope in Peru and then booked on to Jubilee Hope, Tanzania, with a sense of curiosity about how the programme could work in a different country and culture. I was setting out with a friend who had been with me to Amazon Hope twice before, and 2 others who were completely new to Vine Trust. We had been informed that it would be different to, and much busier than, Amazon Hope. The staff gave us a really good introduction on our first evening on board, although we were all a bit…

In March 2016, a team of Vine Trust volunteers travelled to Tanzania to support our partners, TAWREF, in the construction of a home for a widow, Rabisante. Rabisante lived with her eight children in a small mud and wooden house, with only two beds for the whole family to share. Rabisante supported her children by fetching water and washing clothes for local families, as well as working in the plantations. As a single mother, life was tough as she struggled to provide for her children each day. Since moving into their new home, the knowledge that they have a secure and…

Ronald Kebaso is one of the key healthworkers in Vine Trust's Jubilee Hope Medical Programme. Here, Ronald talks to the team about his time with Vine Trust, and the importance of the Jubilee Hope Medical Programme to the vulnerable communities on the islands and shores of Lake Victoria, Tanzania. “Prior to joining the Jubilee Hope Programme, I worked as a nursing officer in different health facilities in Nairobi, Kenya. They included health centres and referral hospitals from 1998 to 2008. I moved to Tanzania in 2008 to work with AICT, the national partner in Tanzania for the Jubilee Hope Programme. I mainly…

In just over two years, the Kirk of Calder, in the small West Lothian village of Mid Calder, has raised over £76,000 towards the construction of a children's home in Tanzania! Launched in September 2014, the Kirk of Calder’s project will support Vine Trust’s charitable work in Tanzania, and specifically the construction of a large children's home in the Kilimanjaro region. With the support of neighbouring churches and the local community, the Kirk of Calder is racing towards its fundraising target of £85,000 by the autumn of 2017! The local community have organised events and undertaken a variety of fundraising…