SCAW BLOG: TANZANIA, 2026: August 2

Arrival in Tanzania

Today the team arrived in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania tired after a 24 hour trek from Toronto via a (quick!) stop in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. We were happy to be greeted by Wendy and Benjamin, volunteers who are also the children of our local partner, Mama Wandoa of UPENDO. Mama has been the oversees partner of SCAW in Tanzania for over twenty years.

After a brief check-in at the hotel to clean up and unpack, we met Mama in her home which serves as the hub for the manufacturing and storage of the 7000 bedkits that will be distributed by our team over the next two weeks.

Pictured are bedkits for boys (blue) and girls (black) and the sewing room where they’re created, an open-air upper-floor room with about 10 sewing machines, each one different as they have been donated and collected over the years.

This year’s bedkit contain a mattress, sheet, backpack, clothing, school supplies, shoes, and mosquito net. They also include an item called a kanga which is a very common item in Tanzania. A kanga is a colourful rectangular piece of fabric worn by men and women and used for many purposes such as a head/body wrap, baby sling, or a sheet. The kanga often includes some writing on it that is an uplifting Swahili proverb.

The team is excited for the days ahead!

Team Tanzania, 2026

Upendo AIDS Information and Counseling Centre 🇹🇿 + SCAW 🇨🇦