What to take to Tanzania, Africa

TheEffect

I'm traveling to Tanzania in July for 1 month with others and we're going to be traveling visiting lots of schools, families, villages and local people.

I went last year and didn't take hardly anything to help, so this year, we're all taking limited luggage so we are able to take things that would be useful!

The problem is, what do we take?

Last year, we visited a school for blind children that had no electric or material. We're revisiting them, so I've contacted the RNIB asking if they could donate anything that could be of value to them? They replied saying they have passed this onto the relevant department, but that was over a month ago....

We've currently collecting old football tops to take for the kids, but what can we take that's of use?

I'm not sure whether it's worth contacting charities or businesses asking for support? I'm at university, so while I'm willing to pay for items to take, contributions of items are a big help (and leaves us with more money to travel to meet/see more people).

We do not want money, as we are linked to a school in the UK who have fund raised and we've got just under £10,000 which we're splitting between four school, we just need things to fill up our suitcases that would be beneficial to the people in Africa!

Has anyone got any advise or just any ideas on where to go from here?
I want to take as much to help as many as possible, but I'm lost....!

LittleVoice

Ask the people whom you will be visiting.

Text books?

Flash drives?

Pencils, ballpoint pens.

Notebooks.

WolfSong2000

LittleVoice is right...ask the schools what they want. If you can think of anything that they would be able to re-use indefinitely, then so much the better!

Brightspark

We recently went to malawi on a charity building project, our focus was to help the orphaned children at a feeding centre. We took footballs, skipping ropes, frisbee's and lots of arts & craft materials. colouring pencils, paper etc. We also helped the local primary school with exercise books, pencils, rulers, rubbers & calculators. Any educational textbooks are also good. We took lots of second hand good quality clothing, which we got from our local freecycle request.
The important thing is to check your luggage allowance on the plane, kenyan airways have a generous 40kg limit. Email companies asking for donations and ask friends & family for good quality donations. Good Luck with your trip.

TheEffect

Thanks for all the replies!
I will contact the schools.

markandkate

try https://www.stuffyourrucksack.com

XxXfashionqueenXxX

Contact your local church. People will donate if you make the church a collection point/.

EdinPheonix

I was in Tanzania a few years back and you cannot go wrong by taking pens, pencils & notebooks. I remember sitting in a car and a small boy dressed in rags came up to me, he was no more than five and gestured for a pen, it was the end of my trip and i has given all my pens away, when i remembered a tiny pen i had in the spine of my notebook, when i called the boy back and gave him the pen you would have though that he had won the lottery!