Case Study
In 2003, Anna Yoeza tested positive for HIV/AIDS while at the hospital for prenatal care. "After the results, I was worried what would become of my baby when it [was] born.... How would I break the sad news to my husband?"

Though she told him that day, he never revealed his own HIV status. He died the following year. "As I cleared his stuff after the funeral, I found ARVs [anti-retroviral medication] in his briefcase. This was the first and last indicator to me that he knew he was HIV-positive but never told me. I had never suspected anything."

Since then, Anna has struggled to provide for her six children with the beans she sells at market. Her HIV-status means that her routine includes malaria, tuberculosis, and other painful diseases endemic to her tropical home.

More than 13 million women throughout sub-Saharan Africa have a story like Anna's of how they contracted HIV.

But also like Anna's, their story is often characterized by resiliency. Since her diagnosis, Anna has organized a support group for people living with HIV/AIDS and founded an orphanage for 33 children in the Bara ward of Arusha. Her health is steadily improving with the success of her business and the support of her local community.

Anna Yoeza joined the Arusha Project's Board of Directors in 2006.



Microcredit Program
The Arusha Project's microcredit program was developed for women like Anna—women who are HIV-positive or the primary caregiver for someone living with HIV/AIDS.

We employ a Grameen-style group-lending model, meaning that loans are distributed to groups of five women for a six month period. Because the availability and size of future loans is contingent on each member's repayment, the group members provide both support and incentive to complete the program successfully.

The goal is not only to provide relief for women struggling to afford their children's school fees, two meals a day, or life-extending medication. We are also establishing credit and teaching important financial and business management skills. Our aim is to help create a pathway out of poverty and toward better health.



Grantmaking
The Arusha Project provides grant support to CBOs and NGOs in Tanzania. The next round of applications will be available on this website beginning March 1, 2010. The deadline to apply is June 1, 2010. Funding decisions are announced in September of each year.


Previous grants have funded solar panel installations, medical equipment, and sanitation facilities at rural medical clinics; social services for girls at-risk of female genital mutilation; income-generating programs for women living with HIV; and legal services for women in Arusha Municipality. For more information, please contact grants@arushaproject.org.





Volunteer Program
The Arusha Project’s Volunteer Program is a grass-roots effort to promote economic development and HIV/AIDS-relief in Northern Tanzania. For those living outside sub-Saharan Africa, it is an opportunity to serve on the front lines of a global health crisis, to work with our community in providing a range of services from small business development to caring for children orphaned by HIV/AIDS.

We strictly adhere to the principle of local solutions to local problems, meaning that each of our projects is conceived and directed in Tanzania by Tanzanians. The Volunteer Program includes coordination of your volunteer work within these projects, as well as:


  • ● Local transportation;
  • ● Room and board;
  • ● 24-hour security;
  • ● Matron services;
  • ● Swahili instruction;
  • ● Safari at Tarangire National Park;
  • ● Numerous cultural excursions;
  • ● Contributions to the local community in the form of a grant and microloan.

For more information about our Volunteer Program, or to enroll yourself, please visit the volunteer section of this website.