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About Students Partnership Worldwide

SPW (Students Partnership Worldwide) is an established non-governmental organization (NGO) dedicated to making young people central to the development process. Founded in 1985, SPW currently recruits over 800 volunteers (aged 18-28) each year to work on targeted health education & natural resource management programs in rural India, Nepal, South, Africa, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, Sierra Leone & Zimbabwe.

Focusing on young people, the volunteers assess the specific needs of the community and work with community members to address priority issues that include HIV/AIDS, reproductive health, nutrition, education, agriculture, water pollution and poor sanitation.

International Voluntary Service Activities

SPW recruits volunteers (aged 18-28) to implement targeted health education and community resource (environment) programs in rural communities in 8 countries in Africa and South Asia - India, Nepal, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, South Africa, Sierra Leone and Zimbabwe.

In the past 12 months SPW has deployed over 800 volunteers and anticipates increasing this to around 1,000 in 2006. Uniquely, 75% of SPW's volunteers are recruited from the host countries. These national volunteers work in partnership with American volunteers, increasing the sustainability of the programs and increasing the capacity of the national volunteers.

SPW provides all volunteers with 6 weeks of comprehensive in-country training covering language, basic development theory and practice, non-formal education methods and monitoring and evaluation techniques.

The World Bank and several United Nations agencies endorse the effectiveness of SPW's approach.

Volunteer for Prosperity Opportunities
Number of Opportunities	100
Geographic Regions	Africa; South Asia
Health & Prosperity Sectors	Agriculture; Health; Education; HIV/AIDS; Water; Natural Resources Management; Women & Youth Empowerment
Types of Opportunities	Technical
Average Duration of Projects	32 weeks
Volunteer Profile Summary
SPW is looking for candidates between 18 and 28 years old with a demonstrated interest in international health and sustainable development. Key personal characteristics include excellent communication and teamwork skills; cultural awareness and flexibility; good humor and patience. Prior volunteer experience working with youth is preferred, particularly as it relates to education, health and natural resource management.