American volunteer makes KZN home to help strengthen rural community outreach programmes

FRESH on South African soil, Nikki Parram is the latest addition to the Amangwe Village family as she takes up her volunteer duties through the US Peace Corps.

A financial analyst with a 15-year background in the medical field, Nikki feels the work within the health sector, relating to HIV/Aids, is right up her alley and that her skills are transferable for the Peace Corps programme.

‘When I undertake volunteering opportunities, I do not look at setting up something new in an area, but rather enhancing existing programmes,’ said Nikki.

‘I am really excited about working with Amangwe and its various community groups, but for now I am still in the early stages, learning as much about the organisation as possible to see exactly how Amangwe can best benefit from my services and skills.’

In accordance with Peace Corps protocol, Nikki must spend her first three months integrating into the community, gathering data and undertaking community analysis.

Having undertaken numerous short-term volunteering roles around the world, including in Haiti, Nikki is hopeful she can utilise her multi-national experience to strengthen Amangwe’s existing community programmes.

Prior to taking up her volunteering role in Zululand, Nikki underwent almost three months of intensive pre-service training conducted by Peace Corps in South Africa.

Training schedule

Her training included 61 hours of technical training, 108 hours of language training, 22 hours of cross-culture training, 13 hours of safety and security training, a 48-hour site visit and 24 hours of site shadowing.

‘This training, specifically the language training, has already stood me in good stead, but I look forward to picking up more of the Zulu language during my time at Amangwe,’ said Nikki.

The Peace Corps’ community HIV/Aids outreach project (CHOP), under which Nikki’s volunteering falls, was established in South Africa in 2001 on the basis that SA is a country with one of the highest HIV/Aids infection rates.

Funded by PEPFAR (US President’s Emergency Plan for Aids Relief), CHOP’s purpose is to support long and healthy life, combat HIV/Aids and decrease the burden of the disease.

Its primary and secondary intervention activities, including health education programmes, nutrition promotion, life skills programmes and income-generating activities, are already in existence at Amangwe, so Nikki can use her international experience and fresh eyes to help strengthen the already successful programmes.

Working within the KwaMthethwa, Ntambanana and Sokhulu communities, Amangwe Village aims to provide a holistic approach to the prevention and treatment of HIV/Aids.

The NPO has instituted numerous community projects, including a crèche and toy library, women empowerment programmes, home-based caring and organic vegetable growing.

The women empowerment programmes alone help more than 3 000 women in rural communities who, through self-help groups, teach each other the art of setting up and running small business enterprises, investing money and taking out loans within their group setting.

Since 2009, more than R18-million in loans has been issued to members who have started sewing, vegetable growing businesses, or even those wanting to build a house.

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