There is a severe and widespread HIV/AIDS epidemic in Kenya . E ach year HIV/AIDS claims the lives of thousands of Kenyan children and adults. I t is estimated that about 900,000 Kenyans are infected with HIV/AIDS. The good news is there has been some improvement in recent years. Drugs have become more readily available and distributed, but there have also been significant behavioral changes in the population due to education and outreach with programs like IFRE‘s.

Collaboration with local groups and organizations help foster awareness among local communities. IFRE's interns, hospitals, NGOs and local groups are helping to prevent loss of life and are improving the lives of those already infected. As an intern in our Kenya HIV/AIDS project you can support the ongoing efforts to stop the spread of HIV/AIDS and provide the manpower needed to comfort HIV/AIDS infected patients in Kenya .

There is no specific education, experience, skills and/or qualifications needed to join our fight against HIV/AIDS in an internship project. However, interns are expected to be flexible and patient as well as passionate and have love for the poor and HIV-infected people of Africa .

Many local organizations working on HIV/AIDS program are focused on two areas. First focus area includes: treatment, psychological counseling and support to whose people infected with HIV/AIDS. Interns within the scope of the first focus area generally visit with HIV/AIDS patients (along with a local worker) and distribute food, clothes, medicine and give mental counseling and support. You may provide basic but valuable tips to patients on health, nutrition and sanitation and you may be involved in keeping patient records.

The second focus area includes: HIV/AIDS awareness or outreach programs to increase the community's understanding of HIV/AIDS, ways to prevent the spread of the disease and how to protect themselves from contracting the disease. Interns supporting the second focus area normally participate in HIV/AIDS awareness campaigns and/or community outreach. Interns focused on outreach and awareness programs often visit many schools, villages, churches and present information and media, posters, distribute pamphlets, distribute condoms etc.

IFRE manages living accommodations, provides meals and supervision for interns for the entirety of their stay in Kenya . During the internship period, most interns stay in our safe and secure Nairobi homebase. IFRE's Nairobi homebase is located in a beautiful area nearly 30 km from the Nairobi (Jomo Kenyatta) International Airport in the Thome 1 Estate in the Kasarani division of Nairobi . The estate is very safe and manned with onsite security. It is a clean, sparsely furnished home but will meet all your needs as an IFRE intern. It is close to the local bus station.

In the Thome 1 estate you can see beautiful British style houses that belong to some wealthy families of Kenya . Many business families, high ranked government officials and people with high social status live in this village. The nearby local bus (matatu) station is only one km away from the homebase and it is easily accessible by walking. This matatu runs to downtown Nairobi and it is approximately 15 km from IFRE's homebase in the Kasarani division. The matatu (van/bus style taxi) fare should be approximately $1 one way. Useful amenities within 2 km of the IFRE homebase are an internet café, restaurant and supermarket. The local police station is also located within approximately 2 km from the IFRE homebase.

Occasionally, depending on intern traffic, available projects or distance to an intern's assigned project, we may also place our interns with carefully pre-screened host families. Our host families are socially respected and are experienced with hosting international interns. They have strong interest in our interns' safety and well-being and demonstrate this with caution and care. In most host family situations, interns will share a room with another intern of the same gender. Another viable option is an at-orphanage stay. Many orphanages in Kenya have set aside special rooms to house international interns. Interns who have stayed with a host family or at an orphanage describe an enriched experience because of having done so. Once you have applied for program placement, you will find the specific details of your accommodations in your personal placement documents for your project interns are provided three meals a day. Kenyan foods include ugali - a porridge-like mash made from corn meal; chapatti - bread similar to a tortilla made from wheat flour; irio - a mash of corn, beans, greens and potatoes; rice. Due to monetary constraints, for the interns who arrive earlier or who want to stay longer, it is impossible to offer extra accommodation or food.