Rafiki Volunteer has a varied wild animals conservation volunteering programs across South Africa. We want to change the nature to a better place and to help the wild animals who need it on account of their life story. Rafiki Volunteer ensure that volunteers have a life changing experience while giving back to each of our programs through hard work. ​ Our goal is to bring more and more people to get closer to nature and to bring their desire to volunteer to become meaningful. We care about animals - this is why we will never work with organizations who support hunting and animal abuse for economic needs. ​ By volunteering with us you are assisting other non-­profit organisations on projects and assisting conservation projects in the preservation of wildlife. ​ We are here to help you decide which program is best for you - send us a message.

A variety of expenses are covered such as food, transport and housing for volunteers, training, supervision and safety precautions as well as certain costs included in running the projects successfully. Without your physical and financial aid, these organizations would not have the power necessary to continue the fabulous and worthwhile work they commit themselves to. The participation fee varies depending on the location and needs of each specific program.

Rafiki Volunteer sees the care of all animals paramount. Therefore, we have not, do not, and will not ever, under any circumstances, support any facility that sells lions to the canned hunting industry, whether directly or indirectly. We will gladly investigate any and all claims of animal abuse or accusations that facilities we support are involved in. Rafiki Volunteer will continue to support the zero tolerance against animal abuse initiative and we vow to our volunteers that we will never associate them, as well as ourselves, with canned lion hunting and animal abuse.

We recommend that you apply at least 6 months prior to the date you wish to travel. However, the earlier you apply, the earlier you will be able to reserve your spot on the trip and the project is less likely to fill up before you register. If you are looking to travel in fewer than 6 months, send in your application anyways and we can often accommodate in a much shorter period of time, as long as there is still availability on the project.

A member of our team will be there to meet volunteers upon arrival. Depending on your program the airport will vary however a Pre Departure Guide will be made available once your spot is confirmed outlining all flight information.

If you are interested in volunteering at one of our projects you just need to follow a few simple steps. 1. Once you have decided on your preferred project, choose one of the available dates from the Apply Form, along with the number of weeks you would like to volunteer. Fill out the form. Once completed, press the Submit button. The costs appear on each program page within the weeks possibilities drop down menu. 2. Your request will be sent automatically to a placement coordinator who will contact you and answer any questions you may have about Rafiki Volunteer and the project. Proceed to make your payment online, then we will proceed to secure your placement. 3. Once payment confirmed, the operations team will send you a confirmation email with all of the details about your project and the next steps required to plan for your trip.

Of course! All of our volunteer projects give free time for just this! We understand that you want to explore the diversity South Africa, and our projects are flexible to accommodate for this. Additionally, the on-site coordinators are often happy to help you plan out any activities or small trips you want to take while on your placement.

We understand the concerns that participants may have regarding international travel in a foreign country. We are here to assure you that your safety while on one of our programs is our top priority. We have 24-hour emergency support in every program to which we send our volunteers. Additionally, each of our projects have staff coordinators located either on-site or nearby the project whom volunteers may contact if they need any assistance or have questions while on the project.

The payment already includes 300$ deposit. The following information explains our cancellation policy for the remaining balance of the participation fee, based on the number of days before your program arrival date: 92+ days- volunteer forfeits deposit sum. 91-31 days- volunteer forfeits 50% of the value of the deal or the deposit sum (the higher of these two values will be applied). 0-30 - days or no-show - volunteer forfeits 100% of the value of the deal. The reason for the reducing scale of refunds is to allow us, Rafiki Volunteer, to refer committed volunteers to our partner organizations and thus maintain a good working relationship. In the event that you do cancel, Rafiki Volunteer will try to find a suitable replacement volunteer to carry out your placement, and the less time before the placement is due to start, the more expense and difficulty we will have in recruiting this person. Please note that in cases where you have already changed the start date of your placement, cancellation fees will be determined based on the original start date of your placement.

We give 10% off for returning volunteers. If you are a new volunteer - also feel free to ask us about discounts. We want to help you and ensure that money is not your factor or the reason you don't volunteer with us! Limited time discounts: 1. The Lion Whisperer discount - Click Here 2. Great White Sharks Conservation discount - Click Here 3. Horse Safari discount - Click Here