Programme Structure
- 3 months: Training at CICD in England
- 6 months: Volunteering in an African country or in India
- 1 month : Conclusion period at CICD in England
Certifications
- Field Work Certification from Humana People to People
- Development Instructor Certification from College for International Co-operation and Development
Period One:
3 months training at CICD in England
The first part of the course is based here at CICD.
Here you will join a team of other young or more mature people from all over the world, training to be Development Instructors. The preparations are both theoretical and practical. The studies will include areas such as global affairs, political science and economic development.
Different ways of learning include also out-of-school investigations that incorporates a 5 day bicycle / hitch-hiking trip and community actions. There will be group studies and work shops as well as the individual studies, reading and lectures and training of a number of different practical skills and leadership skills.
During the training you will also practice many ways of expression - such as report writing, making digital and hand drawn posters, and writing poetry, essays and speeches.
All the way through this programme you will be encouraged to debate and formulate your own conclusions. All of the above will be used for the training and service period, and can also be useful if you are thinking about a future career in the non-profit sector.
Period Two:
6 months Volunteering in an African country or in India
After the three months training, once you are equipped with all the knowledge needed, you will embark on the next stage of the journey. You will be placed in a project in a country in Southern Africa or in India. Because of the Covid 19 pandemic, it is not possible to know the destination country until the start of the programme - so you need to be ready to go where it is needed and safe! The projects in the respective countries mostly focus on farming, education and health. Here you will join a range of activities such as working with local farmers to increase food production, starting sustainable and income generating projects, training teachers and supporting ongoing pre-schools or starting up new ones.
The projects work with children, parents, farmers, teachers, local leaders, national government and international partners to tackle the root causes of poverty and together with them build sustainable and thriving communities.
Period Three:
Conclusion and call to action in Europe
You will then return to CICD to digest and share your experiences, and spread the word about what you and your team have achieved. This final stage of the cycle enables you to share your findings and evaluate the impact of the work your team have done in the field. This is very useful for our continual improvement of the programme, and helps you deepen your understanding from all the new knowledge and experiences.
Together with the team, you will also use this period to create materials such as a newsletter, a radio broadcast, articles for newspapers or blogs, a podcast, a video, a multi-media project or other products in order to bring to the public the knowledge and understanding you have gained.
The Development Projects
We combine our unique learning environment with 6 months of field experience in developing communities in countries such as Malawi, Mozambique, Zambia or India.
CICD as well as our sister schools partner with Humana People to People’s member organisations. The Federation of Humana People to People was established in 1996 and is a network of 31 organisations engaged in international development in Europe, Africa, Asia and the Americas. They run more than 400 projects and reach around 14 million people on a daily basis.
Humana’s approach to development is centered around community mobilisation. Humana has developed and tried a methodology that equips communities with the materials, knowledge and infrastructure to lift themselves out of poverty.
As a Development Instructor from our 10 months programme you will volunteer in one of Humana People to People projects for 6 months. To date, participants have worked together with thousands of people to learn new skills to farm, build homes, feed their families, improve health and nutrition and educate their children.
Follow this link to read more about what you can do as a Development Instructor at the projects:
https://www.cicd-volunteerinafrica.org/programmes-cicd/about-the-projects-in-africa-and-india
