Health
6 to 10 weeksRural health drives, clinic support, and sanitation and maternal-health outreach where staff are stretched thin.
Suits you if you have a health background, or you simply care about wellbeing and people.
The Sesa Global Exchange Program
Volunteer and serve in Africa
Come do hands-on work in health, tech, environment or education. We send you where your skills are needed most.
Why volunteer
An experience that changes both sides.
Experience new cultures
There is nothing like living and working in a rural African community. You gain new points of view, new ways of living, and a second family by the time you leave.
Make a real impact
Work on what you care about. Health, tech, environment or education. You join a local Sesa team doing work that actually matters.
Challenge yourself
Our placements will stretch you. You will grow fast, because growth happens where the need is greatest.
What it is
Leadership through service in the communities that need it most.
Sesa invites university students and recent graduates in countries all over the world to come to Africa and work alongside us in the rural communities we serve. You will get your hands into real programmes. Health outreach, girls in STEM, education initiatives, community advocacy. You will leave with something no certificate can capture.
This is not a sightseeing trip with a volunteering label on it. This is immersive, meaningful, rural-first work. You will be challenged. You will be moved. You will grow in ways you did not expect.
We are rural-first by design. Most placements sit in villages and small towns where an extra pair of skilled hands goes furthest. From your first week you are embedded with a local Sesa team on real work with measurable outcomes, supported the whole way by an in-country buddy. Spots are limited. We keep cohorts small so the experience stays meaningful.
Four ways to make an impact.
Pick the area that fits your skills. Every track runs across our active countries.
Tech
6 to 10 weeksDigital-skills bootcamps, coding clubs, and data and AI literacy. You will help rural youth and local organisations go digital.
Suits you if you work in tech or data and want to teach what you know.
Environment
6 to 8 weeksTree-growing drives, clean-ups, and climate education in rural schools. Hands-on and visible from day one.
Suits you if you care about the climate and like being out in the field.
Education
6 to 10 weeksMentoring, literacy and youth-leadership workshops, and youth-led events.
Suits you if you light up in front of a room and love coaching people.
Your experience with us
Here's what we arrange for you, and what makes a great volunteer.
What's included
- An official invitation letter for your visa
- Vetted accommodation in a host home or volunteer house
- Three meals a day and airport pickup
- An in-country buddy and weekend cultural immersion
- A completion certificate and a written reference
What we ask
- A minimum six-week commitment to your cohort
- A registration fee and weekly program fee (below)
- Openness, energy, and genuine respect for the community
- A short interview before we confirm your placement
How it works
From application to arrival in four steps.
01
Apply
Send the short form below. Ten minutes, no fee to apply.
02
Interview
A 30-minute video call to understand your goals and answer yours.
03
Match
We place you in the country and community where you'll do the most.
04
Arrive
Invitation letter, accommodation, and your buddy waiting on day one.
Where we work
Active across West Africa.
Sesa works rural-first in communities across West Africa. Tap any country to start an application there. Accra, Ghana is home base.
Accra, Ghana is our home base. Every country here runs active, rural-first placements.
Cultural immersion
Walk through Africa's history.
Weekends start near Cape Coast and reach landmarks across the region.
Cape Coast Castle
The UNESCO fort where every cohort begins.
Great Mosque of Djenné
The world's largest mud-brick building.
Osun-Osogbo Sacred Grove
A sacred forest and UNESCO site on the Osun River.
Pendjari National Park
Elephants, lions and savannah in West Africa's wild north.
House of Slaves
Gorée's memorial and Door of No Return.
Lake Retba
The pink lake just north of Dakar, coloured by algae and salt.
Photos via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY / CC BY-SA).
Home baseAccra, Ghana
ApproachRural-first
Duration6 to 12 weeks
Program fee$150 + $175/week
LanguageEnglish
I came to Klefe in the Volta Region of Ghana, to volunteer as an instructor on a STEM project for eight weeks and I left having learned more than I taught.Joyce MacArthur USA
Florida Polytechnic University
Apply
Start your exchange.
Tell us about you and where you'd like to serve. We read every application and reply within five working days.
- Free to apply. No commitment yet.
- About 10 minutes to complete
- A real person replies within 5 days
Good to know.
Can I choose my country?+
Yes. Tell us your preferred country and area in the form. Final placement balances your track, your skills, and where the rural need is greatest.
What does the program fee cover?+
A one-time $150 registration covers admin, your invitation letter and matching. The $175 each week covers accommodation, three meals a day, in-country support and a project contribution. Flights, visa and insurance are separate.
Do I need to speak a local language?+
No. English is the working language across our placements. Picking up a few local words is encouraged and your buddy will help.
Will I get a certificate?+
Every volunteer who completes a placement receives a certificate and a written reference detailing the work you did.