Temporary Closure Notice

Dear Kululeku Community,
Due to the current post-election situation in Mozambique and our commitment to ensuring the safety of our volunteers, staff, and the entire community, we have made the difficult decision to temporarily suspend our operations.

The safety and well-being of everyone involved in our work is our highest priority. We will continue to monitor the situation closely and will resume our activities as soon as it is safe to do so.

We look forward to continuing our mission in Mozambique when conditions improve!

Warm regards,
Vanessa, Vado & Jan

Vision and our projects.

Kululeku is an NGO that works to raise funds, sponsorships and volunteers in order to strengthen the Mozambican community, facilitate the path to education and thus alleviate the social ills of the country.

We are active exclusively regionally in Mozambique and invest mainly in development and educational institutions and measures. Helping begins on a small scale. We believe that education is the best way to achieve a sustainable improvement in living conditions.

With a little more than 180 volunteers in the last 3 years we have succeeded in building several wells, 3 school buildings as well as a chicken house, a protective fence around the school garden, teaching 1000 students in about 12.000 school hours, bringing electricity to our partner school, providing food, school uniforms and teaching materials to more than 400 children and placing almost 30 sponsored children.

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And we are far from finished!!!

The popularity of kululeku is increasing every year, which is why we receive more and more applications for volunteer work. We have entered into various cooperations and receive increasing donations of money and goods every year and can convince more people to adopt a godchild. In 2020 we would like to build our own private school, which will be accessible for all children without school fees.

“An investment in knowledge pays the best interest.” Benjamin Franklin

In addition to the development aid provided by our volunteers, we collect donations from companies and private individuals as well as through social crowdfunding and offer sponsorships for needy children and families, where every cent goes to them. Thanks to African foundations and international companies, but especially thanks to our volunteers, we are able to support our partner project sites in several projects: In 2017, for example, we succeeded in repairing an old well. Around 1000 people now benefit from fresh drinking water. This was a milestone for all future construction projects! The access to water also gave us the opportunity to build a real school building and toilets. With this building we will be able to install alternative energy sources such as wind turbines and solar panels on the roof of the school in the future. Therefore we now have access to electricity through the well construction. This was installed in 2018. Since then, the 600 students have been able to access computers. Up to now, the rural areas have been denied access to the Internet and to the usual PC programs. The children can now use the computer at an early age and at a young age to familiarise themselves with the Internet in order to secure a future on the labour market. Thanks to our volunteers, IT lessons are possible now – the Mozambican school system does not provide for this.

Hopefully in the near future we will also have our own farm near the schoolyard to grow fruit, vegetables and cereals. The agriculture project planning has already started. On the one hand, the school children get something to eat, on the other hand they learn to take responsibility and can apply what they have learned in their own garden.

Kululeku is committed to facilitating access to education for all children. We especially want to support those who have been completely denied access to education or whose path has been interrupted through no fault of their own. It is also our goal that the school is perceived as a place that offers hope, fun and a future.

We refrain from investing money in many different projects at the same time. Our goal is not only to temporarily alleviate grievances, but to bring about long-term change. We are convinced that only with education and empowerment of the population we can bring about the desired change and stop poverty. Be a part of African freedom.

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Volunteering.

Volunteering in Mozambique is the best way to spend time abroad, gain life experience, get to know foreign cultures and make friends with locals and other volunteers from around the world. You can help others and use your own skills to alleviate social ills. Through our projects you have the unique opportunity to participate in the development of a non-privileged country and to accompany it on its way to economic and social strength.

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Mass tourism has not yet reached Mozambique. Bazaruto, the only underwater national park in the country, offers untouched nature, miles of deserted sandy beaches, an intact underwater world with unique coral reefs and extremely friendly and warm-hearted people. Take the opportunity to explore one of the most beautiful spots on earth and gain experiences that will last a lifetime.

If you are looking for a special, unconventional travel destination, you have come to the right place! We have 6 projects (can be combined) where you can bring your knowledge and skills to bear. We also do Beach Clean Ups every Saturday. You can find more information here.

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Donations.

With your donation you support us in the realization of our project plans. We know that there are many charity organisations and that trust has been lost in some cases. Due to our state non-profit status recognized by the Federal Republic of Germany, you can be sure that your money will reach its destination. Our volunteers ensure that we – as one of the very few NGOs worldwide – pass on 100% of the money to the aid projects without deduction of administrative costs. Every dollar helps, every dollar arrives!

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Our big project in 2020 will be the construction of our own school, where every child will have the right to education without paying school fees. Please support us in the realization of our project!

You can find more information here.

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Sponsorships.

Going to school is a privilege for many Mozambican children. There is no compulsory school attendance. School is subject to fees, the children have to wear a school uniform, which most of them cannot afford, and finance their teaching materials (pencil, paper and books) themselves. Only very few families can afford the costs of about 20€/month. In addition, the children have to walk a long way to school (5km easily), which means a lot of time is lost. During this time there is a lack of manpower within the family.

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Therefore most of the children only attend school until the 5th grade and then help their family in the fields, fishing or water supply. With a sponsorship of 10€ per month you take over the school fees, the uniform and equip the child with teaching materials. With 20€ per month the child can also pay the return journey and support the family a little. You can find more information here.

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Internships and theses.

We offer four students/year the opportunity to complete their mandatory internship or to write their bachelor or master thesis with us. For further information please contact us. Furthermore, we are looking for interns all year round to support us in project management, social crowdfunding and social media. For further information and an application please send us your CV and a short letter of motivation to info@kululeku.org.

The kululeku movie 🙂

Who we are.

Kululeku was founded in 2016 and is a non-profit association based in Germany and Mozambique and the only NGO in Vilanculos. We are not UNICEF or the Red Cross, but a small, familiar organization with the aim of strengthening the population economically, alleviating social ills and giving children a better future through education. Kululeku is a matter of the heart for us. The place of birth determines under which conditions we grow up. Through many trips to African countries the founders of kululeku – Vanessa and Jan – got to know and love the population.

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“The Mozambicans are such kind and friendly people that we decided to make our contribution here with kululeku which means “freedom” in Xitswa – the local language in Vilanculos to at least minimize the prevailing poverty, the ailing education system and the injustices of the different classes. We are convinced that we are not alone with this attitude and that many people want to share their innate privileges”. Helping starts small, but together we can achieve great things. Here you can learn more about Vanessa and Jan.

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Facts – why help is needed

Although Mozambique has made significant progress after the 16-year civil war that ended in 1992, almost half the population still lives below the poverty line. On the human development index, Mozambique ranks 181 out of 188 countries. A quarter of the population is considered undernourished; life expectancy is one of the lowest in the world at 55 years. (Source: www.bmz.de). According to UNICEF there are 1.5 million orphans in Mozambique. Over 30% of the children work in fields, markets or as beggars. and elderly people is also almost hopeless. There is no social catchment basin as in many western civilizations.

Another disability in Mozambique is that its regularly hit by droughts and floods. About 1.5 million people suffer from the lack of food and water. Experts assume that Mozambique will be severely affected by the consequences of climate change.

In the schools around Vilanculos, one teacher looks after up to 150 pupils in each subject. Many children only attend school up to the 5th grade because the children have to earn money for the family from this age, on the other hand because the system cannot provide the children with the necessary individual care. There is not only a lack of staff, books, classrooms and teaching materials, but also a lack of school uniforms and shoes to cover the 5km distance daily. The illiteracy rate among young adults is 50%. The AIDS rate of adults is over 10%, which puts them in 8th place on the worldwide HIV index. There is a lack of education – not only regarding the vital intake of the medication, but also the prevention of the deadly disease.

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kululeku volunteering Vilanculos Mozambique

Faiquete – one of our partner schools.

Every morning and every evening the children and teenagers walk about 5km to school and back – often without shoes and with an empty stomach. The school uniforms of their older siblings, which were worn daily for years, are dirty, old and torn. Many children are ashamed of their parents’ poverty and therefore do not go to school. In many Western civilizations it seems to be almost normal to start studying or training via the second educational path. Not so in Africa. The school system follows a strict path. Those who leave school are dependent on themselves. In the cyclone season the school building is blown away daily. Before classes begin, the children and teachers build a hut made of palm fronds, which serves as a classroom.

One of our partner schools is located about 10km outside of Vilanculos. Samuel Vilankulo has been director there for many years and is responsible for 600 students and 18 teachers. In our interview he tells us about the challenges he has to face every day and about the visions he would like to bring to life together with kululeku in order to give the children a good education.

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The school grounds cover about 2 hectares, which are little or not used at all. On the huge sandy area there are only – besides 2 solid and storm-proof buildings – 4 straw huts, which serve as classrooms, 3 toilets, which unfortunately don’t work due to the lack of water supply, and a well, which hasn’t worked for years. However, the extensive sandy area offers countless possibilities and also the necessary conditions to connect the school to the electricity grid. If only sufficient water would be available…

State institutions have built manually operated wells for the public schools many years ago. However, today there are almost no spare parts for this type of well, because they switched to electric pumps a long time ago. The well of this school has been defective for many months. Through the repair of the well by our kululeku volunteers and collected donations, the school now has access to fresh groundwater. Thanks to the water, the students not only have daily access to potable water, but we can now also start building a stable school building and the toilets. In Mozambique, so-called “blocks” can be easily made with water, sand and cement, which are then left to dry in the blazing sun for a few days. These form the foundation for very stable houses. The stable school building enables us to bring electricity to this rural region through solar cells on the roof. Combined with alternative energy sources such as wind turbines and solar panels on the roof of the school, the 600 students would then have access to computers. Until now, access to the Internet and the use of the usual programs was completely lacking in rural areas and in school education. The children would thus be accustomed to the use of PCs at an early age and at a young age and would be familiarized with the Internet, thus securing a future on the job market. Without computer skills and the corresponding financial background of the parents, which hardly any family has, the professional chances of finding a job are extremely poor.

The access to water offers us now the possibility to create our own farm and to cultivate the garden to grow fruits, vegetables and grains. The students learn to take responsibility and can apply what they have learned in their own garden. Many children around Vilanculos are starving and after a long day at school they don’t know if they will get something to eat in the evening. Our aim is therefore to provide the children with a warm lunch each day. We support the local community by purchasing goods and services from the neighboring villages.

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NGO kululeku Africa Mozambique teaching Vilanculos

Come and visit us.

You are just or are planning to go to Vilanculos? For a small contribution towards expenses (transport) you are welcome to look over our shoulder during our daily work and to accompany us to our project locations. Vado and his team will be very happy to show you the schools and villages outside of Vilanculos, put you in contact with our volunteers and the locals and show you our progress in the Vilanculo region.

Vado manager kululeku voulnteers Mozambique

“There is a lot of gratitude and I see that with kululeku I´m doing a good job here!”

– Job from Netherlands –

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Where is Vilanculos?

Vilanculos is a coastal town in the world famous Bazaruto Archipelago. The surrounding area is lined with forests of coconut palms, crystal clear waters and miles of sandy beaches. Although Mozambique is geographically located between the African tourist hotspots of Tanzania and South Africa, the coastal state is still untouched and in no way inferior to its neighbors.

Vilanculos has about 40,000 inhabitants, most of them work in fishing, on the market or in the fields – there is no economy or industry in this area. The tourism industry is growing rapidly and offers a new source of income for many inhabitants.

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The cross-border Kruger National Park connects South Africa with the neighboring Limpopo National Park in Mozambique. The 3000km long coastal strip in the east of the country runs along the warm, azure blue waters of the Indian Ocean. Mozambique also borders Swaziland to the southwest, Zimbabwe to the west, Malawi and Zambia to the northwest and Tanzania to the north.

For more information about our kululeku house, the surroundings and the activities you can do in Vilanculos, click here.

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Certificate

Pimp your CV! After your stay we will send you an official confirmation, which is a great proof of your time abroad and your social commitment.

Apply now

Our friends

partner NGO kululeku volunteers Mozambique