Local girl involved in Tanzania project

Joanna Diggle is a local girl from Wetherby currently attending Edinburgh University and this summer 2014 she is going out to Tanzania with 5 other student volunteers for 6 weeks to take part in the construction of a multi-purpose sports court alongside leading sports teaching and activities, English lessons and vocational training in a small town called Usa River, 14 miles outside of Arusha. This is through the organisation EGP (Edinburgh Global Partnerships) which is a registered student-run Scottish charity that aims to assist in community-led, sustainable development projects overseas. EGP has been running for over 22 years and has led projects in countries such as Uganda, Rwanda, Sri Lanka, Mongolia, Malawi, Zambia, Nepal, Ghana and many more. The reason Joanna and fellow students are going out to Tanzania is because the existing soil grounds in the area can become unusable in poor weather conditions and a new, proper concrete court would enable members of the community to participate in sports activities throughout the year. They also plan to deliver and participate in sports programmes and English lessons as well as providing vocational training to members in order to increase employability for the young people involved who are all existing members of URYDO (Usa River Youth Development Organisation) and would receive countless benefits from the project. All of the volunteers involved chose this project specifically because sport is a large part of their lives. Each of them believe it can help people in so many ways - even more so in a country like Tanzania where poverty is a massive concern and for young people this can be just the distraction from tough everyday life that they need. They are hoping it will encourage more young people in the community to join URYDO and the English and vocational training would largely increase employability for those who would otherwise not get the chance. They have been in contact with their host out in Tanzania and know that the young members of the community are so excited for the project and even willing to get involved themselves in the construction in any way they can, so Joanna knows it will be massively appreciated by them. Joanna wrote to us to enquire whether we could make a contribution towards the project to help hm reach their target of £7,080, 65% of which has already been raised and we responded with a donation of £200. If you wish to make a donation then follow this link - http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/fundraiser-web/fundraiser/showFundraiserPage.action?userUrl=egptanzania&faId=392269&isTeam=false Here are some photos of Joanna and her fellow students fundraising and meeting their local host Sam