A giveback tour is one of our ordinary trips with one or more working days added, spent with a village along the route on a project that has been prepared in advance.
How it works
The projects are not invented for visitors. They are proposed by the community itself and selected together with us against the criteria set out on Community development projects: necessary to daily life, within the village’s own capacity, using materials available locally, and doing no harm to the landscape.
Each project has a written description and a detailed budget, item by item. You choose the project, you know in advance what you are contributing to, and when it is finished you receive photographs and the final accounts.
Ways of contributing
- Money — towards a specific item, not into a general fund.
- Materials — bought locally, so the money stays in the area.
- Labour — one or two days working alongside the villagers: concreting a stretch of village path, building a water tank, repairing a school yard.
- Expertise — if you are an engineer, a doctor, an electrician, a teacher. Expertise is often worth more than money.
What we do not do
This part matters, and we set it out plainly so you know what you are taking part in.
- We do not put visitors into classrooms or into caring for children. Children are not a tourist activity. A stream of strangers arriving and leaving does harm, as has been documented in many parts of the world. If you want to help a school, we will help you do it through the school.
- We do not let visitors do skilled work they are not qualified for. A badly built wall that the village then has to knock down and rebuild is harm, not help. The skilled work is done by local builders; visitors do the supporting work under their direction.
- We do not hand gifts directly to children. Sweets, money and toys handed out along the road have already created begging in a few places. Where there are gifts, they go through the school or the village head to be shared fairly.
- We do not stage scenes for photographs. You photograph what is actually happening, and you always ask first.
What a project day looks like
The morning is spent working with the villagers, usually on the jobs that need many hands: carrying materials, mixing mortar, digging channels, clearing ground. Lunch together at the community house or in one of the homes. The afternoon is either more work or a walk round the village, depending on progress.
This is real manual labour, at 1,000 to 1,600 metres, and the sun can be fierce. You do not need to be especially strong, but you should come knowing that it is not a staged two-hour experience.
Who it suits
Groups of friends, families with older children, company groups, and organisations wanting to combine a trip with something concrete. We also work with partners who want to fund a whole project without taking part themselves.
Our partners on the ground
We work with local community development organisations on surveying, budgeting and supervising the work. The community is the owner of the project; we and you are there to support it.
If you want to take part
Write to info@hagiangexperts.com with your likely dates, the number of people and what you are able to contribute. We will send back the projects waiting to be done at that time, with their budgets, so you can choose.