Think Twice Before Volunteering with IVHQ

Contrary to what many might believe, IVHQ does not operate as a humanitarian or charitable organization but functions primarily as a revenue-generating business.

To those who genuinely wish to volunteer and contribute to a humanitarian cause, I urge you to reconsider choosing IVHQ. It’s important to understand the difference between volunteering for a charity and participating in a commercial enterprise. I, too, fell into this misunderstanding. The reality is that you are often placed in challenging living conditions, which can create a sense of guilt and pressure to donate money locally. Meanwhile, the upfront fees you pay largely benefit the organization itself.

IVHQ explicitly refers to itself as a “social enterprise,” not a charity. In fact, they reported revenue of $15 million as of May 2025. This distinction matters because it means your contributions primarily support the organization’s operations and staff—not the communities or children you expect to help.

My purpose in sharing this is to warn others who sincerely want to make a positive impact through volunteering. Please take the time—just 10 minutes—to research this organization thoroughly before committing. While IVHQ markets itself as providing a “volunteer experience,” it is not a charity; its primary goal is profit generation.

If your goal is to support genuine charitable work, I strongly encourage seeking alternative organizations with clear charitable status and transparent use of funds. This is something I deeply regret not investigating earlier.

My personal experience:

I would give 0 stars If I could! I will take legal actions against them. Please people dont fall for this scam. I recently took part in a volunteer program in Kenya, for which I paid $300 in administrative fees and an additional $300 for accommodation and food. What I experienced on the ground was a far cry from what was advertised, and falls drastically short of what any organization claiming to support ethical volunteering should consider acceptable.

Accommodation & Safety Upon arrival, we were told we would be in temporary accommodation for two nights before being moved to our permanent homestay. These first 2 nights we were not even housed in the main home, but in a 5-square-meter outside shed next to the dog shelter, with no window, no mosquito net, no light in the bathroom, and no basic hygiene items such as towels or hand soap; etc. At the second (permanent) homestay, the conditions were not only unhygienic but dangerous. The bathroom wiring exposed us to electric shocks, and one volunteer ended their experience early due to this ongoing safety risk.

Misleading Orientation & Program Focus The orientation program lasted half a day, and instead of offering any valuable preparation for our roles, most of it was used to promote safari tours and excursions. Throughout the week, the program representatives spoke almost exclusively about money — how to fundraise, where to donate, and sharing links to GoFundMe pages. This was highly inappropriate and felt more like a commercial operation than a humanitarian initiative.

Inadequate Food & Living Conditions Despite paying $300 for food and lodging, our breakfasts were often just dry bread and margarine, and dinner was very basic. Lunches were just leftovers from dinner. The house was filthy, without basic necessities. (There were cockroaches in the kitchen) Thankfully, I had brought my own toiletries, towels, and bedsheets — otherwise, I would not have been able to stay there at all. The conditions were substandard and unsafe, and not in line with even the most basic expectations of a paid accommodation experience. On Thursday night we checked out earlier as we went to a hotel for the night to take an early flight Friday morning. We only paid the hotel 60 dollars for 2 people. So literally a hotel was cheaper than the money we paid for accommodation in the slum.

Ethical Concerns Our placement school had teachers asking us for iPads, while children had no pencils. It became clear that the volunteer experience was being used as a tool to create emotional pressure, rather than to genuinely assist the community. This scheme seems intentionally designed to expose volunteers to hardship, not for cultural immersion or service, but to guilt-trip them into donating money.