JJ (Remote Volunteer)

AMMA Clothing, Sri Lanka

JJ Pisharello first volunteered with AfID in October 2019, when he helped The Baobab Home in Tanzania. He was due to take on a second placement in mid-March 2020, this time with AMMA Clothing in Sri Lanka. However, due to the COVID-19 outbreak, he and the partner decided to instead carry out the placement remotely. Read on to find out more:

Stacie (ACCA)

Msichana Empowerment, Kenya

"I feel incredibly privileged to have spent two weeks working with four amazing women (five including fellow volunteer Hayley) at Msichana Empowerment who help girls struggling through poverty, those at risk of FGM and who just want to stay in education. It was eye opening in so many ways. I really hope I’ve made a difference to Msichana’s finance department and Joyce feels my time with her was useful."

Andy (CIMA)

SolarAid Zambia, Zambia

"I am just coming to the end of my first week of many in Lusaka, Zambia. I am here volunteering as an accountant for SunnyMoney, a company that distributes solar powered lamps all around this and several other countries in sub-Saharan Africa. This is my second placement through AfID and I will hopefully be here until mid-December. Looking forward to the rest of my time here."

Jessalyn (CPA)

Womens Resource Centre, Cambodia

My first day with Women’s Resource Center was this past Monday and after a few days I can just say “wow” - the group of women that run WRC are amazing and the work they do is fantastic... I think we’ll have a really great time working together.

Tim (ACA)

The Sani Foundation, Zambia

As my professional career was always in the corporate world, it did take a bit of adjustment to allow for how an NGO should function. Everything is helped by the team being very capable and very committed, and at times I think they are teaching me more than I am them.

 

Melva (CPA Australia)

SMART, Nepal

Australian CPA, Melva, was intrigued to read the story about an Australian accountant who had contributed her time, skills and knowledge to an organisation in Africa. It wasn't long before Melva started her own AfID journey to Nepal.

Monica (CIMA)

Childrens Hope in Action, Vietnam

It's Day 1 of my two weeks at CHIA. This inspiring NGO offers life-saving programs on health, disability, housing, and water and sanitation to disadvantaged children and families in the Quang Nam province that are barely surviving on less than $3USD a day.

Caroline (ICAEW)

Pampamayanang Mangyan Ugnayan, Philippines

My first couple of days were quite overwhelming, especially while still suffering from jet lag, and it really seemed like there was no part of living that I can assume works the same at home, but it wasn’t long before I adapted to them as normal life and realised that coming back to England would be another shock!

Natalia (ACCA)

Paz y Esperanza, Peru

From the enchanted city of Lima to the bright lights of London, Natalia left Peru in 2014 and ventured across the Atlantic to take the next step in her accounting career. Whilst working as a Management Accountant, she decided to use her annual leave to do something different and when the opportunity arose to head back to her home country to volunteer, Natalia simply couldn’t pass up on the opportunity.

Keith

Humanitarian Services for Children of Vietnam, Vietnam

When Keith retired from 27 years in the accountancy sector, he decided to travel the world. Whilst he found solo travel fun and interesting, he decided he wanted to do something more with his time and having searched for responsible and meaningful volunteering opportunities, a friend told him about AfID. Fast forward a few months and Keith decided to volunteer for one month with Humanitarian Services for Children of Vietnam (HSCV) and 4 months later? He's still there! We caught up with him to find out about his volunteering experiencing...

Kate & Ruan

Cheetah Conservation Botswana, Botswana

South African accountant Ruan got in touch with AfID as he was interested in finding a project where both he and his wife Kate, who is qualified in Conservation Biology were able to volunteer together. The duo ventured off to Botswana to volunteer with Cheetah Conservation for 5 weeks and a little while after they got back, we got in touch to ask a few questions about their inspiration for the trip, what they got up to and if they'd consider doing it again...

Amy & Jonny

Cambodia Knits, Cambodia

The last couple of weeks have been pretty crazy in he Page abode. It all still seems slightly unreal, almost as though we may wake up from the dream of it all, but on Saturday we will be off to Cambodia!

Juliette (ACCA)

Leonard Cheshire Disability, Zambia

So, here I am, 18 months later, on my second accounting volunteer assignment through Accounting for International Development (AfID) in Zambia.

Michael (CPA Canada)

VSO Bangladesh, Bangladesh

Canadian CPA Michael Wills is in to his second week volunteering with Classical Handmade Products in Bangladesh, where he is blogging about his experience…

Ruby (CIMA)

Child Rescue Kenya, Kenya

“Initially I thought I am a nobody… and what help can I offer to CRK?... but the colleagues here are so friendly, grateful and appreciative that I realise that even a little recommendation I am offering is being taken with respect and sincerity.”

Jeannette and Andrew (ACA)

Anza, Tanzania

Hi there, if any of you who are now reading this don’t know us,  we are Jeannette and Andrew. We have just embarked on an interesting adventure – 6 weeks working with a social entrepreneur business accelerator in Moshi, a town of 200,000 , at the foot of Mt. Kilimanjaro, Tanzania.

Agnes (ICAS)

Red de Empresarias de Nicaragua, Nicaragua

After leaving the house on a cold Monday morning at 4am, my start was challenging. All radar in Scotland, and backup, ceased to function. An hours fraught delay and we got started. The pilot was wonderful and calmed many fears. It reduced my time in Amsterdam before the plane to Panama City.

Jonathan (FCA)

Slum Soccer, India

Jonathan is a Chartered Accountant from the UK who is spending a couple of months volunteering his skills in financial management, governance and accounting to Slum Soccer, a small NGO based in India, which uses football as a tool to bring about positive social development amongst street dwellers in some of India's biggest cities.

Kerry (CPA Canada)

Helping Overcome Obstacles Peru, Peru

I am about to set off on my next adventure. Volunteering in Arequipa, Peru. Accounting for International Development, have arranged for me to assist an organization named HOOP – Helping Overcome Obstacles Peru, a registered NGO working to break the cycle of poverty through education in the Flora Tristan community of Arequipa, Peru. I will be posting some pictures and writing about my experiences here.

Phil (CIMA) & Natalia

SolarAid Malawi, Malawi

Phil and Natalia will be spending six months with Solar Aid in Malawi, an award-winning charity that aims to enable the world’s poorest people to have access to clean, renewable power.

Meghan (ICAS)

Projet Jeune Leader, Madagascar

Having worked for KPMG for 4 years through the school leaver program, Meghan decided to apply for an assignment through AFID in order to use the skills I had learnt to support a cause that inspired me.

Mark (ICAEW)

Temwa, Malawi

"It is unbelievably almost the end of my first week in Mzuzu. During these first few days I have met a lot of very friendly people, toured around the sites of this amazing city, done some work at TEMWA and tried a variety of local food and drink."

Dan (ACA)

African Vision Malawi, Malawi

This  is a blog of my trip to Lilongwe, Malawi, to volunteer for the charity African Vision Malawi for 6 weeks organised by the team at AfID (Accounting for International Development).

Juliette (ACCA)

Humanitarian Services for Children of Vietnam, Vietnam

I’m on the final countdown now to my first assignment with AfID. I have been thinking about volunteer accounting  since I first read an article in the Accountancy magazine about AfID a couple of years ago now.

Bob (CPA Canada)

YaLa Africa, Rwanda

I’m not looking forward to the airplane trip itself too much (24 ½ hours) but I’m definitely looking forward to getting to Rwanda. AfID and YaLa Africa have been very helpful getting things organized and all arrangements went smoothly.

Diane (ACCA)

Yellow House, Kenya

AfID volunteer Diane is heading to Kenya where she will be supporting Yellow House, an organisation that provides speech and language therapy services to children.

Peter (CIPFA) & Elizabeth

Temwa, Malawi

Peter and Liz will be providing financial support to Temwa which works with the 39,000 strong community of Nkhata Bay North in Northern Malawi. Temwa aims to support the local communities develop sustainable agriculture and forestry and improve health and education outcomes.

Sarah (AAT)

Child Support Tanzania, Tanzania

"I am really excited about being immersed in African culture, and I’m eager to get started on working as hard as possible to ensure that the long term future of CST is more secure."

Nick (ACA)

El Porvenir, Nicaragua

Until recently Nick worked for KPMG Cyprus in Audit & Assurance but over the next five weeks he will be providing invaluable support to El Porvenir, who work to improve the standard of living for rural Nicaraguans through water, sanitation and health education projects.

Malcolm (ACCA)

Global Fund, Ecobank, AfID Partnership, Senegal

Malcolm is blogging from Senegal, where he is spending six weeks as part of the exciting Global Fund and Ecobank partnership fighting to combat Malaria, TB and HIV.

Sophie (ACA)

KNGO Cambodia, Cambodia

Sophie spent six months volunteering with the Khmer New Generation Organisation (KNGO) in Cambodia. Before setting off from London Sophie was looking forward to experiencing Cambodian culture and way of life, as well as providing impactful support to KNGO.

Phil (BoC)

Samson Mlup Prey, Cambodia

Phil  undertook a a 10 week assignment in Cambodia with Sanson Mlup Prey (SMP) providing accounting support, staff training, financial modeling and business planning. Read about Phil's work and his discovery of the Cambodia tourists don't usually get to see.

David (FCCA)

Cambodian Rural Development Team, Cambodia

David spent 8 weeks in Cambodia supporting the Cambodian Rural Development Team. Read about David's experience and his insightful top tips for future volunteers.

Stephen (FCA)

Grassroots Tanzania, Tanzania

Steve volunteered for 3 months with Grassroots Tanzania. Read all about his work, the people he met and his unique experience including climbing Kilimanjaro.

Gary (CIMA)

South East District Youth Empowerment Association, Botswana

Gary is taking time out from his Finance Manager role to spend 2 months in Botswana supporting SEDYEA, an organisation that works to tackle HIV/AIDS. Find out how he's getting on here.

Sonya (AAT)

Good Health Youth Organization, Malawi

After 480km of sweating, falling and cycling, past AfID volunteer Sonya and her daughter Anna have made it! A huge congratulations to them both and to all those who took part. Sonya and Anna raised nearly £2000 for Action for Charity's Women V Cancer, here's her thoughts on her epic voyage...

Kara (CPA)

ChildLinK, Guyana

Kara was granted a sabbatical by her employers at PwC and used it to help ChildLink with their accounting skills. After facing her fears and overcoming the temperamental shower, Kara had a great time taking herself out of her comfort zone.

Simon (ICAS)

Mobility Foundation, Ghana

Simon spent 6 weeks lending a hand to Mobility Foundation in Ghana where his financial expertise allowed the organisation to continue its work helpiong to develop communities in order to tackle issues such as HIV/AIDS.

Laura (ACA)

Khmer for Khmer Organisation, Cambodia

Laura spent a month lending her expertise to the Khmer for Khmer Organisation (KKO) in Cambodia, in between the busy work schedule she took in the rich and vibrant culture that makes Cambodia the uniquely beautiful country that it is.

Pratthana (CA)

Ndhiwa Community Empowerment and Development Project, Kenya

Pratthana has been exploring Africa working with some of our partner organisations using her financial expertise to improve the standard of living for many local communities. Take in the sights of her adventure here.

Malcolm (ACCA)

BIKASH Nepal, Nepal

Malcolm spent 3 weeks in Nepal with a health care and development charity. Read about his amazing experience in Pokhara and travelling around Nepal.

Rebecca (FCMA)

MicroCredit Foundation (MCF), Zambia

After being made redundant from her corporate role in London, Rebecca took only nine-days to find a new role as Finance Manager at MicroCredit Foundation, Zambia. Read about her adventure in Africa!

Chris (CA)

INCLUDED, Argentina

Chris started his placement with our first Chinese partner, Included, six-weeks ago with an aim to use his skills and make a difference. Read about his Beijing-adventure so far.

Martin (FCA)

Shaishav Trust, India

Martin's story is an inspiration for accountants who doubt transferability of their skills. For the next six-weeks follow his adventure in India, where he is working with the Shaishav trust, a charity which aims to help and support children through campaigning against child labour, discrimination and social justice. 

Jume (CA)

The Dessaix-Baptiste Music School , Argentina

Jume is an accountant from Scotland. Her blog will be really helpful to those thinking about volunteering. She talks about the workshop, volunteering, she might be able to answer your questions and/ or concerns of those travelling alone. Follow Jume in her journay from rural Scotland to Haiti from 17th August 2013! 

Spencer (FCA)

WhizzKids United, Argentina

Spencer, FCA, and his wife Manda are currently spending one-year in Durban, South Africa, volunteering at WhizzKids United - a charity that focuses on promoing healthy behaviour change. 

Sonia (CIPFA)

Friends Foundation, Ghana

When she wasn't in the office helping Friend's Foundation address their lack of monitoring and planning, Sonia was getting used to the Ghanaian way of life including receiving marriage proposals and learning people's names.

Michael (FCA)

Cambodian Living Arts, Cambodia

Semi-retired Michael spent 3 weeks building the financial management of CLA, a charity which aims to preserve the cultural history of Cambodia, and to promote and encourage young people to participate in performing arts.

John (ACCA)

EduSport, Zambia

John successfully helped two charities during a 6 month placement. Some of his highlights included volunteering in both Rwanda and Zambia, adjusting to the Africa way of life, playing barefoot Gaelic football and running marathons!

Sonya (AAT)

Good Health Youth Organization, Malawi

AAT Director Sonya has been spending 3 weeks in Malawi mentoring staff members Charles and Blessings at Good Health Youth Organisation, a community NGO working in the areas of water, sanitation, health, and education. 

Matthew (CIPFA)

Phare Ponlue Selpak (PPS), Cambodia

Matthew visited temples and ancient historical sites while mentoring the finance staff at Phare Ponleu Selpak (which boosts the self-esteem of children through song and dance) and Meakea (which provides education and healthcare).

Matt, ACA

Rose Cambodia Rehabilitation Centre, Cambodia

Matt spent 4 weeks in Cambodia with a disability charity learning about Cambodian culture and trying the local dishes. His amazing experiences ultimately caused him to overcome his scepticism about international charity.

Clare (ACA)

Moyo Babies Home and Redeemers Children's Home, Uganda

Clare spent 9 weeks in Uganda at Moyo Babies Home and at Redeemer Children's Home, where she helped budget for the next year, made many little friends, and used up all her balloons.

Laura (MAAT)

Rural Healthcare Foundation (RHCF), Uganda

Laura spent six weeks in Uganda. During this time she saw silverback gorillas and elephants, met many welcoming local people, and visited farms, schools and wells to see the positive impact of the charity.

Julianne (CA)

Village Health Works, Burundi

Julianne Favron credits Africa with changing her whole perspective on life: she spent 6 eye-opening months in Burundi helping charities support women, provide healthcare, and promote reconciliation between survivors of conflicts.

Helen (ACA)

The School Club Zambia , Zambia

Helen spent three months using her finance skills in Uganda. During her travels Helen helped build wells, visited schools, saw Victoria Falls and the Great Rift Valley, went on a sunset cruise, and saw cheetahs and elephants.

Kara (ACMA)

Action for Children in Conflict (AfCiC), Kenya

Kara spent three weeks in Kenya using her accountancy skills to support Action for Children in Conflict, an organisation that aims to support and rehabilitate vulnerable children in Kenya, and address the affects of conflict on their lives.

James (FCPA)

Childreach Nepal, Nepal

James from Australia spent 4 fun-packed weeks in Nepal supporting Childreach, which provides children with education and health care services. In between providing financial coaching, he enjoyed a much more relaxed way of life.

Anisha (ICAEW) & Siva (CIMA)

Ahazaza Independent School, Rwanda

Siva and Anisha spent five weeks in Rwanda at Ahazaza, an independent school set up by a strong-willed Belgium lady. When not playing with the children, they helped increase the school’s financial self-reliance.

Andrew (CIMA)

The John Paul II Justice And Peace Centre (JPIIJPC) , Uganda

Andy Murphy spent four exciting weeks at the JPIIJPC in Uganda, which fights poverty and inequality. As well as coaching local staff in financial management, Andy experienced many unique and exciting activities in Uganda.