"Increasing the impact of our programmes on rural young people and communities in Africa and Asia."
SPW would like to thank the students of Jesus and Trinity Colleges for their support in 2000-01. Thanks to SAFE donations, four indigenous volunteers have been able to take part in SPW programmes, working in two rural communities, reaching eight hundred students as well as numerous community members, to relay vital health and environmental education.

Young people have the right to correct information and to have the skills and freedom in ordeer for them to make, and then act on, crucial decisions. At a time when HIV/AIDS levels are rising in much of Africa at an unprecednted rate, it is SPW's aim, through Health Education and Environment programmes in Tanzania, Uganda, Zimbabwe and South Africa to provde them with this information and the life skills to actually put it into practice.

SPW volunteers work in mixed nationality pairs or groups as peer educators (combining indigenous and European volunteers), raising awareness of important, sensitive youth issues amongst students. Using fun, participatory activites, volunteers are able to introduce issues such as HIV/AIDS, sanitation, nutrition, alcohol and drug abuse and other health anfd environmental issues in a way that is relevant and accessible to the students.

SPW peer educators have a real and significant impact in the rural communities in which they work. A Form Four student from Wanging'ombe Secondary school, Tanzania writes:
"SPW volunteers teach us many things when those who are responsible to give us this education - parents and relatives - cannot. Since SPW volunteers are peer educators, then they touch all issues even about STD, HIV/AIDS, teenage pregrancy without phobia. SPW volunteers and students, we are the same age, which makes a big difference."

The pairing of indigenous with European volunteers is an integral part of SPW's programmes. This partnership allows each to become aware of a new perspective on the world and by bringing together different knowledge and skills, the volunteers can achieve so much more than they ever would separately. The European volunteers are entirely self-financed but SPW would like to invite SAFE to consider funding indigenous volunteers to take part in programmes in 2001/2002. SAFE schemes could either sponsor any number of volunteers or adopt a particular placement and support the two indigenous volunteers that would be required to run the programme there.

For more information please see http://www.spw.org/