BOPHELO KE KGWELE – “The game, The life!”

Location and general information

Context

In South Africa, physical education was removed from the school curriculum in 1994, before subsequently being reinstated, thanks to the 2010 FIFA World Cup, among other things. However, sport is generally neglected in townships such as Mamelodi, which have few suitable sports pitches and playing fields. As a result, only schools with sufficient infrastructure and financial resources are able to offer such lessons, which are essential for children’s development.

Project content

The Bophelo Ke Kgwele (The game, the life!) project offers a programme based on three pillars: educational support, sport and the development of life skills. Through extracurricular activities combining sport and education, it aims in particular to equip children with the tools they need to develop as people and reduce high-risk behaviour. The project uses football (among other sports) to drive social cohesion, personal development and children’s awareness of issues such as criminality, health, HIV/AIDS, self-esteem and high-risk behaviour (violence, alcohol, drugs, gangs, early and unprotected sex, teenage pregnancies, etc.). Most of these activities, which are supervised by six young local coaches, are held on the public Rethabile Sports Ground (RSG) and at the project’s partner schools.

IMBEWU runs the Bophelo Ke Kgwele (The game, the life!) project in partnership with Altus Sport, a local organisation that has spent almost 20 years providing youth education through sport, and four partner primary schools that host the ‘Read & Write’ educational support sessions. Aimed at children in years 1 to 4, these sessions are teacher-led, although youth leaders can also monitor the children’s progress and help them with any problems. Furthermore, since many children in Mamelodi township are malnourished, the project’s objectives now include a nutritional element, with each participating child given a piece of fruit every day (except Fridays, when the number of participants is unpredictable).

Objectives

The primary objective of the project is to use sports and educational activities to improve the life chances of children from the townships and to help them become drivers of change within their own community.

  • Improve children’s physical and mental well-being: sport gives children and young people a healthy lifestyle, and this is accompanied throughout the programme by personal development sessions spelling out sport’s intuitive lessons.
  • Support children’s general education by means of ‘Let’s Read’ sessions: enabling the very youngest children (six to eight years old) to learn to read and write in English in a stimulating environment.
  • Raise awareness and provide information about HIV/AIDS: the prevention and treatment of HIV/AIDS is one of the main issues addressed at these sessions, as children and disadvantaged groups in townships have to deal with this pandemic from a very young age.

Project Activities

‘Let’s Move’ sports sessions

The children participating in the project learn how to play a wide range of sports four times a week throughout the year. Every Friday, non-participants are also invited to attend open-doors events known as ‘Fun Fridays’, when sports matches and tournaments are organised.

‘Life Skills’ sessions

‘Life Skills’ sessions promote social awareness and health prevention through fun, interactive games. They start with a game that focuses on a specific life skill, which is followed by a discussion on the chosen theme. The children then participate in an activity linked to the theme, before the session concludes with a final game involving the sport and the life skill taught during the session. The sessions address social and health-related topics such as HIV/AIDS, the environment, rights and responsibilities, criminality and gender equality. Older children tackle more sensitive issues linked to sexual and reproductive health, drug use and various addictions.

Educational support

Through its ‘Let’s Read’ programme, the Bophelo Ke Kgwele project offers support with reading and writing in English to children aged between six and eight.

Camps and other weekend and holiday activities

In order to give children a chance to get away from the harsh realities of life in their township, camps are organised once a year, when they can escape, discover nature, spend time with their peers and develop a sense of responsibility by cooking, cleaning and tidying. These camps also enable the coaches to assess the children’s leadership skills.

Monthly meetings and training sessions for the six young coaches

A training workshop is held for all the coaches involved in the projects run by Altus Sport in order to provide opportunities for discussion and dialogue between the young leaders and offer them training that will help them find employment.

Expected results

Specific objective A:

Enhanced psychosocial well-being and general education for the children and teenagers participating in the Bophelo Ke Kgwele project.

Expected results A:

A.1         Improved social skills and behaviour among the children and teenagers participating in the project.

A.2         Improved personal skills among the children and teenagers participating in the project, as well as development in various areas such as leadership, target-setting, sense of responsibility, etc.

A.3         Improved English and critical thinking skills among the children and teenagers participating in the project.

A.4         Improved sports performance and health among the children and teenagers participating in the project.

Specific objective B:

By building partnerships, the local partner (Altus Sport) becomes stronger, more sustainable and more autonomous in the local and international contexts.

Expected results B:

B.1          Local partners (primary schools, Tshwane municipal authority and parents) are involved in the project and contribute to its sustainability and success.

B.2          Lessons learned from the experience within the partner organisation are used to improve the quality of the project.

Partners

IMBEWU, Altus Sport, Pula Difate, Zakhele, Balebogeng and Mononong primary schools, University of Pretoria

Football for Peace Academy

Location and general information

Terminé
Location Bosnia and Herzegovina
Start date 04/01/2021
End date 03/31/2023
Cost of the project €473,407
Foundation funding €96,142
Project identifier 2018499
Partners Genesis Project, Fundlife International
Categories Personal development

Context

Bosnia and Herzegovina is home to a large number of ethnic groups. The three main groups in the country are Bosniaks, Serbs and Croats. The post-independence war in 1995 has left the country in a fragile and ethnically divided state. Furthermore, the division can also be felt in the education system, thanks to the existence of divided schools. This kind of school demonstrates the phenomenon of “two schools under one roof”. These schools, which are found in cantons and areas of Bosnia and Herzegovina where the ethnic composition is mixed, are segregated on the basis of ethnicity. This situation is amplified by the fact that the education professionals generally tolerate this way of thinking. Children are thus prevented from participating in joint activities with pupils from different ethnic groups. Some teachers even feel that separate schools should exist for the different ethnic groups. As a result, research conducted by the Open Society Fund Bosnia and Herzegovina has shown that the education system in Bosnia and Herzegovina does not prepare young people for life in a multi-cultural society. This could in turn lead to other problems, such as intolerance and a lack of understanding towards people of different cultures or ethnic groups.

Project content

The Genesis Project organisation has been working with these schools and has implemented various joint activities. By working with teachers, students and parents, the Genesis Project hopes to break down barriers to mutual comprehension, overcome ethnic separation between the ethnic groups present in these schools and create the building blocks for peaceful coexistence.

The supported by the UEFA Foundation for Children, will target eight ethnically divided schools in the Central Bosnia canton. Over the course of the three-year implementation period the Genesis Project will conduct numerous joint activities in 24 primary schools.

  • 113 workshops per year for children
  • 112 workshops per year for parents
  • 48 workshops per year for teachers
  • 30 educational puppet shows per year for younger children
  • 30 educational theatre shows per year for older children
  • Football for Peace Academy

Objectives

As football is the most popular sport in Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Genesis Projects wants to use its power to engage children’s minds and harness their passion, providing an alternative to the influence of conflict and ethnic segregation. The Football for Peace Academy will be used as a means for decreasing the threat of recurring conflicts and violence within schools and as a social tool to promote peace, communication and respect for the diversity existing among the project beneficiaries.

Project activities

The Genesis Football for Peaceful Communities (GFFPC) project will use football to foster trust, dialogue and tolerance in communities where these things currently do not exist. It will use the football3 methodology as a way to encourage peace and reconciliation and promote peaceful community development. With the support of international capacity-building partners, Genesis will train 72 local mediators from Bosnia and Herzegovina and 48 local schoolteachers, who will set up and lead the activities of the GFFPC project.

The project will involve:

  • the selection and training of fooball3 mediators;
  • the selection and training of football3 coaches;
  • the donation of necessary equipment and signature of the memorandums of understanding with school management to enable them to provide extracurricular football activities;
  • the selection and training of the football3 players, chosen based on respect rather than sporting ability, with a view to forming local football teams;
  • the organisation of football matches.

Expected results

  • Delivery of three football3 and Football for Social Development training sessions to 24 young people who will become football3 mediators, making 72 football3 mediators in total
  • Delivery of Football for Social Development and football coach training sessions to 48 community and school coaches, giving each coach the potential to directly train up to 50 children
  • Delivery of two weekly football sessions at the coaches’ schools, making a total of 72 sessions per school over the 36 weeks of the academic year
  • Organisation of 120 football matches (five per primary school)

Partners

School for girls in Chepang

Location and general information

Ongoing
Location Nepal
Start date 09/01/2019
End date 04/30/2022
Cost of the project €215,776
Foundation funding €43,000
Project identifier 2018558
Partners Planète Enfants & Développement (PE&D), Prayash Nepal
Categories Personal development

Context

With an estimated population of 50,000, the Chepang are one of the most disadvantaged ethnic minorities in Nepal: 20% of them live in Dhading district (epicentre of the first earthquake in 2015) and 90% live below the poverty line. In this very patriarchal community, women are victims of discrimination and violence, and only 1% of them can read and write. Since there are no schools near where they live, girls therefore find themselves in a particularly difficult situation and leave school at a very early age.

The Chepang association currently runs a residential home for girls who attend school.in the municipality of Gajuri. This home provides them with their only opportunity to continue their education. Planète Enfants & Développement (PE&D) and its local partner, Prayash Nepal, have been supporting this home since 2015, offering both educational assistance and equipment. However, the building is dilapidated, if not unsafe, and is only being used on a temporary basis, since it does not belong to the Chepang community. There is therefore an urgent need to improve the living conditions of these girls and to offer them more support.

Project content

The project is designed to help Chepang girls between the ages of 11 and 18 to complete their education in conditions conducive to their development. With this in mind, the UEFA Foundation for Children would like to support the efforts of PE&D and Prayash Nepal to build and start using a new accommodation centre.

Objectives

The main objectives of this project are:

  • to build and equip a new accommodation centre for girls;
  • to construct a sports pitch and purchase sports equipment;
  • to provide educational support for girls.

Project activities

The following activities are planned for the coming months in the municipality of Gajuri:

  • The construction and fitting out of a new model accommodation centre for girls from the Chepang minority in Dhading district. This home will provide its residents with safe, clean and comfortable living conditions that will make their everyday lives more dignified and peaceful.
  • The construction of a sports pitch and purchase of sports equipment: Chepang girls are rarely encouraged to participate in sport, even though it is vital for their development. With this equipment and the assistance of a sports coach once a week, they can discover the joy of playing individual and team sports that are popular in Nepal. The sports pitch will also be made available to the Chepang association for football, volleyball, badminton and cricket activities, including tournaments for children in the community.
  • Educational support for girls: two teachers specialising in literary and scientific subjects will help the girls on a weekly basis to assimilate their learning, develop confidence in their own ability and prepare for exams.

Expected results

This project will last two years, with the building work due to last one year. The new accommodation centre will comprise several sustainable, earthquake-resistant buildings constructed using eco-friendly methods. It will contain dormitories for 30 to 35 girls, bathrooms with showers and toilets, a kitchen, a dining room, accommodation for the caretaker and his family, and two common rooms.

During these two years – in the old building to begin with, then in the new one – the focus will be on educational support, individual coaching and sport. Since sport is an instrument for the empowerment of women and girls, it will be used to strengthen their self-esteem and self-confidence. The ultimate objective is for these girls to become role models in their community, escape poverty and encourage other girls to continue their education. This support is essential if girls are not to become discouraged, leave school and harm their chances of a better future.

Partner

Open Fun Football Schools programme – Playing for peace

Location and general information

Closed
Location South Sudan
Start date 12/01/2018
End date 12/31/2020
Cost of the project €300,000
Foundation funding €250,000
Project identifier 2019722
Partners Cross Culture Project Association, South Sudan Football Association and Nasvick Initiative
Categories Access to Sport - Conflict victims - Personal development

Context

After 42 years of intermittent civil war and local conflicts, the situation in South Sudan is fragile. As of 2018, this conflict had resulted in almost 400,000 deaths and the displacement of millions. Since 2014, South Sudan has been experiencing one of the most acute refugee crises in the world. According to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), 1.9 million people have been forced from their homes. The country is also facing considerable humanitarian challenges. Consequently, much of the population lacks human rights protections and is dependent on humanitarian assistance. Moreover, many children in South Sudan are traumatised by the war and do not have access to schooling or any opportunity to take part in safe, fun activities.

Project content

The Cross Cultures Project Association is collaborating with the South Sudan Football Association (SSFA) to provide access to football activities for children affected by decades of war and conflict, and to contribute to peace and reconciliation among different ethnic groups. In December 2018, Cross Cultures undertook a small baseline study together with the SSFA, which revealed that only 67 boys and 48 girls aged between 6 and 15 years played football in a formal club in the Torit area, and only 71 youth teams for children under 17 and 12 female teams were registered with the SSFA in Juba (involving fewer than 1,500 persons).

Some 3,600 children now take part in weekly Open Fun Football Schools activities organised by Cross Cultures. The programme provides a friendly, joyful and non-violent environment in which people of different backgrounds can play together, along with an informal platform for educating children and youngsters in other life skills.

The project focuses on the integration of school dropouts and the large number of internally displaced children returning to their homes after many years. The activities are primarily run by youth leaders, young volunteer coaches and coach assistants.

(Note: The Covid-19 pandemic is of course impacting the programme. The number of people affected by Covid-19 in South Sudan is increasing every day. Schools are closed. Children are at home. Their movements are restricted, and they are prohibited from gathering in larger groups and playing football with their friends.

However, maintaining a lockdown in South Sudan is challenging because it is among the poorest countries in the world and households need to earn a daily income for food and other necessities. People are therefore forced to move around cities visiting locations such as markets and taxi stands, with a high risk of spreading the virus. In addition, poorer families, orphans and street children do not have access to information regarding the outbreak or proper sanitation.

In light of the above, the Open Fun Football Schools programme has been suspended and its 200 young volunteer football coaches are assisting South Sudan's health authorities, for example by providing Covid‑19 information and distributing sanitation kits directly to 1,000 vulnerable households and orphans involved in the programme and distributing information in public places. These activities were not originally included in the programme.)

Objectives

The Open Fun Football Schools programme aims to mobilise and train 200 young men and women to run activities that contribute to peaceful inter-ethnic relations, improved livelihoods, health, gender equality and the protection of the environment and natural resources. The project focuses on the inclusion of orphans and internally displaced people and returnees in Torit and Juba communities.

Project activities

  • A train-the-trainers seminar will be held for Open Fun Football Schools instructors on how to use grassroots football to encourage integration, peaceful inter-ethnic relations and social change.
  • A two-day capacity-building seminar for voluntary coaches as well as on-the-job training will be run by the youth football instructors and international CCPA staff.
  • A five-day Open Fun Football Schools course will be offered for vulnerable, socially vulnerable and isolated children.
  • Training and coaching will be provided to football instructors, coaches, assistant coaches, parents and older children on how to include hygiene, sanitation and Covid-19 awareness campaigns in the programme.
  • The young volunteer coaches will hold health and hygiene training on Covid-19, water-borne diseases and other related illnesses, which are among the leading causes of human suffering and death in South Sudan.

Expected results

  • At least 40% of the children involved in the programme must be girls and a minimum of 50% of the participants must be orphans, children from poor families or other out-of-school children.
  • Sixteen young people are to be trained to become instructors and football instructors.
  • The 16 football instructors are to recruit 96 volunteer coaches and 96 volunteer assistant coaches.
  • Some 2,000 children aged between 6 and 12, of whom a minimum of 50% are to be girls, are to take part in five-day Open Fun Football Schools courses, with eight festivals to be held.
  • The Open Fun Football Schools approach is to be formalised and implemented, providing a sustainable support structure for volunteer-led sports activities.
  • The young football instructors and coaches are to be trained in health and hygiene.
  • A further 194 voluntary coaches and assistant coaches are to be trained by the instructors in health and hygiene.

Partners

Giving youth and peace a sporting chance on and off the field

Location and general information

Terminé
Location Kenya
Start date 01/01/2019
End date 12/31/2019
Cost of the project €134,400
Foundation funding €114,000
Project identifier AFR - 2018289
Partners Mathare Youth Sports Association (MYSA), streetfootballworld, East Africa Cup, Laureus Sports for Good Foundation, Noracta
Categories Personal development

Context

The Mathare area is one of the largest and poorest slums in Africa and home to around half a million adults and children. Over 70% are hardworking single mothers and their children, whose fathers have died or have abandoned their family. One of the problems in providing help to Mathare and other slums is that there are so few studies and facts available. When the United Nations collects statistics they use only two categories, urban and rural. The slums with their urban poor are hidden inside the urban statistics; just as the slums are a hidden part of the city, so few visitors ever see them. Yet in Nairobi and many other big cities in Africa, more than half the population lives in slums. The highest levels of unemployment, crime and illiteracy can be found in the slums.

Health Status

The Mathare and neighbouring slums are densely populated and all around there is uncollected rubbish, human waste and blocked drainage systems. As a result, chronic diseases such as malaria, cholera, tuberculosis and dysentery are easily spread, and outbreaks wreak havoc among the population living in the slums.

Sickness and death is the greatest concern for those working to support Mathare. People cannot afford proper health treatment due to limitations in the health services available. Water is also a big problem in the Mathare slums and neighbouring areas. Clean water is sold in 10-20 litre containers and some people struggle to afford these. The use of dirty water causes infections and diseases.

Vulnerable populations

In Mathare and the surrounding areas young people and children under 18 years old are the most likely group to contract HIV/AIDS or get caught up in crime, drugs or alcohol. The factors behind this include a lack of education, a lack of income-generating opportunities, and cultural norms and practices that limit their opportunities to benefit from social and economic development. Alcohol abuse has also contributed significantly to the increase in numbers of young people having unprotected sex, which in turn has increased the number of sexually transmitted infections.

Project content

The Mathare Youth Sports Association (MYSA) is a community development organisation that uses sports to engender broad socio-economic development, while also effecting positive social change. Founded in 1987 as a self-help youth sport and community development organisation, MYSA has, to date, grown to be the largest youth sport and community development organisation in Africa. Over 1,500 football teams are registered, playing over 15,000 league matches a year in over 16 communities (zones) covering 11 sub-counties in Nairobi County. This means there are over 25,000 young people signed up as members. MYSA is recognised as an example of excellence within the sport and development world, especially in addressing social issues.

MYSA has continued to use sports activities, particularly football, as innovative and effective ways to get young people involved in helping themselves and their communities. In addition, over the years the organisation has expanded its activities to include other sports, arts and culture, HIV/AIDS awareness and prevention, health education, photography, youth rights, youth employability, leadership awards, a leadership academy programme and community libraries. The organisation has also replicated the MYSA model in Kakuma refugee camp in northwest Kenya, as well as in Botswana, Tanzania, Sudan and Uganda. In total, the organisation has directly impacted over 200,000 young people over a period of 30 years.

One of MYSA’s most distinctive qualities is the fact that it is owned and managed by the young people themselves and that it is genuinely a community-driven organisation, with the average age of the MYSA officials, volunteer leaders and coaches being just 15-16 years old. But despite their age, these young leaders have benefited from MYSA programmes and have amazing enthusiasm, dedication and drive to continue the work of the organisation.

Objectives

  • Encourage peace-building by increasing the participation of young people in sports.
  • Produce effective and efficient sports administrators and leaders through training courses.
  • Create partnerships with local and international schools, colleges and other institutions.
  • Create learning opportunities for players through local and international youth exchange programmes and raise awareness about disability issues within the community.
  • Ensure that the community members living in Mathare and neighbouring slums are aware of the importance of environmental conservation and contribute toward fighting climate change.
  • Improve the quality of local playing fields in order to reduce injuries during MYSA activities.
  • Document all MYSA activities, design and publish MYSA brochures, newsletters and an annual report.

Project activities

  • Registration of teams and members, where mutual understanding and friendship is cultivated.
  • Election via a democratic process of 144 leaders who can coordinate the leagues in the 16 zones.
  • Engagement of young people in football leagues and building their environmental awareness while providing safe spaces for them to discuss and enhance peace in their communities.
  • Equip young leaders from the leagues with both football and life skills, as well as building their capacities in different areas, including photography, coaching and refereeing, among others.
  • Bringing the top achievers from the 16 zones together to share their best practices, enabling them to bond and learn from each other.
  • Both teams and players will earn points for actively and successfully completing a scheduled community service activity (which could be, among other things, opening up the closed sewerage system, levelling the playing fields, cutting grass or planting trees).

Expected results

  • Registration of 1,850 teams and over 26,900 members.
  • Over 10,000 matches played and all statistical reports provided.
  • Election of leaders in league committees, sports, community service and executive councils.
  • 72 sports, community service and executive council meetings.
  • Annual MYSA championship and film festival.
  • Engage 22 personnel in the implementation of the project activities.
  • 32 clean-up activities, building a tree nursery and more than 600 trees planted.
  • Develop and repair two playing fields a month.
  • Transport clean up equipment for all 32 scheduled community service activities.
  • Increase environmental awareness in all 16 MYSA zones.
  • Treat all injuries arising from activities related to the sports leagues.
  • Establish four new partners to support the activities.
  • Offer 24 activities, two a month for children with disabilities.
  • Two local and one international educational tour for children with disabilities.
  • Purchase stationery, sports and communication equipment and materials.
  • Train 72 members and young leaders on environmental issues, film and photography.
  • Four media briefings and a press conference.
  • Two local and one international tournament and exchange programme.
  • Report to the UEFA foundation after six months (interim report) and at the end of the year (final report).

Partner

Supporting education in Afghanistan

Location and general information

Terminé
Location Afghanistan
Start date 01/01/2019
End date 03/31/2020
Cost of the project €120,000
Foundation funding €51,746
Project identifier ASI - 2018502
Partners AFRANE (Franco-Afghan friendship)
Categories Personal development

Context

Founded in 1980 to provide assistance to the people of Afghanistan, AFRANE (Franco-Afghan friendship) began to specialise in education in 1996. Its current activities are mainly focused on teacher training, school construction and the provision of educational equipment.

AFRANE believes that children’s access to education is essential for the sustainable reconstruction of the country. Its motto is ‘Education, the best way to peace’. It is in this context that the UEFA Foundation for Children is supporting a project that aims to improve secondary education in Kabul and Parwan provinces, and to build a sports pitch.

Project content

The project aims to support Afghan schools and enhance secondary education in Parwan and Kabul provinces by raising the standard of science and IT teaching, providing equipment to 16 schools and training 460 teachers on the one hand, and by creating a healthy and stimulating learning environment through participation in sport on the other.

Objectives

  • To expand the existing accommodation programme.
  • The project has three pillars:
    1. Improving science teaching in Kabul and Parwan provinces
    2. Improving access to IT for secondary school pupils in the cities of Kabul and Charikar
    3. Raising awareness of the benefits of participating in sport

Project activities

Improving science teaching

Laboratories play a key role in promoting active, experiment-based learning and put the pupil at the centre of the learning process. It is difficult to develop a scientific mind if you have never been able to conduct experiments yourself. This is why a science teacher training programme (covering chemistry, physics and biology) is being organised in collaboration with the national science centre (part of the Afghan ministry of education).

Improving access to IT

Currently, most university students and school-leavers have no computer skills whatsoever. AFRANE, which has been increasing its IT-related activities over the last few years, will continue to train teachers and provide schools with IT equipment in 2019 and 2020.

Raising awareness of the benefits of participating in sport

AFRANE would like to create a healthy, stimulating learning environment in the schools within its network. With this in mind, two sports pitches have been built in the city of Charikar.

A new 260m2 sports pitch will soon be built at a girls’ school at the request of its head teacher. Relatively few Afghan girls participate in sport. In order to ensure that their involvement is accepted and perceived positively by all pupils, AFRANE will organise a training session for teachers from several schools, who will be able to share their opinions on participation in sport and its positive effects on education in general, and non-violence awareness in particular.

Expected results

The ultimate beneficiaries of AFRANE’s activities are the pupils, who receive a better standard of teaching.

  • 55,200 schoolchildren (54% of whom are girls) benefit from higher-quality science teaching and improved access to IT education.
  • A new IT suite is opened in Kabul or Charikar.
  • A 260m2 sports pitch is built (football and volleyball).
  • 1,200 girls benefit from a sports pitch at their school.
  • 375 teachers receive training (240 in science, 120 in IT and 15 in raising non-violence awareness through sport).
  • The 375 teachers who receive training are observed in the classroom in order to check that they are using the teaching methods taught during the AFRANE training courses. Group remedial classes are organised for the teachers.
  • 100 teachers from dangerous enclaves in Parwan province are trained in mathematics and science.
  • The needs of 16 laboratories are analysed and funding provided to equip at least four of them.
  • A computer is provided for the libraries of 12 of the 16 supported schools.

Partner

Inter Campus Venezuela

Location and general information

Closed
Location Venezuela
Start date 03/01/2019
End date 03/31/2020
Cost of the project €74,705
Foundation funding €29,340
Project identifier AME - 2018622
Partners Inter Futura S.r.l., Fundación Magallanes
Categories Personal development

Context

Since 2014 Venezuela has been experiencing an unprecedented economic crisis. Caritas estimates that there are approximately 380,000 malnourished children in the country and one in three children is suffering irreversible physical and mental damage.

Average pensions are around just $6 a month and people have virtually no purchasing power. Most of the time, however, it is not a question of how much things cost, because the supermarkets are empty. Owing to the scarcity of necessities, many citizens are forced to consume pet food. At the same time, there is a lack of basic medicines and sanitary conditions are disastrous.

This economic and social crisis is linked to the acute political crisis that the country has been facing since March 2017, which has given rise to insecurity, violence and corruption.

Project content

Inter Futura S.r.l. was set up in 1997 to manage Inter Campus, the corporate social responsibility (CSR) programme of FC Internazionale Milano. Inter Campus offers support to needy and often forgotten causes with the aim of making a difference through sport and other long-term projects. It promotes local initiatives, coaching children together with local trainers and encourages the involvement of families.

Inter Campus Venezuela was established in 2010 in collaboration with the Fundación Magallanes as a way of supporting sports and educational activities for children living in deprived areas who are at risk of criminal involvement. The project also provides sports and educational training for three local instructors, two men and one woman. The project focuses on the suburbs of Caracas within the Sucre municipality, one of the largest and poorest in the whole of South America. Petare, a huge favela which, sadly, is well known for being a dangerous and extremely challenging place to live, hosts Inter Campus in the San Isidro neighbourhood. One hundred children train here at least twice a week, which keeps them away from negative influences.

Inter Campus promotes children’s rights and supports the Right to Play initiative. It contributes to the development of local communities, supporting educational, social and sanitary protection programmes carried out by local partners. Moreover, Inter Campus promotes social integration among different ethnic groups and cultures.

Objectives

The project’s objective is to help socially deprived children combat the problems they encounter in their everyday lives. This may be violence, poor sanitary conditions or nutritional deficiencies affecting physical development. Working on and off the pitch, with a good partnership network and strong support from the local partner, Inter Campus hopes to alleviate these terrible conditions and create a virtuous circle from which future generations can benefit.

Inter Campus Venezuela also pledges to respect the ten fundamental values and principles set out in the UN Global Compact and to promote sustainable solutions while carrying out the project.

The project aims to:

  • promote children’s right to play by organising regular training sessions and participating alongside other social institutions in tournaments organised by third parties;
  • support education through leisure and sports activities;
  • support social and sanitary programmes;
  • ensure gender equality by encouraging the participation of girls in the project.

The project offers support for:

  • 125 participants, aged between 6 and 16;
  • children suffering malnutrition, those from violent backgrounds, pregnant teenagers and children abandoned by their families;
  • girls (35% of participants).

Project activities

  • Two football training sessions a week for every child
  • Regular participation in football tournaments
  • Warm meal provided after each training session – 250 meals supplied every week
  • Nerazzurri (black and blue) equipment provided once a year to create a sense of belonging for the participants
  • Creation of girls’ teams
  • Awareness-raising campaign for girls aged between 12 and 15 on early pregnancies. Sport is used to build their self-confidence and to encourage them to stay at school.

Expected results

  • Access to healthy and good quality food (i.e. protein, carbohydrates, vitamins and minerals) is ensured, reducing hunger in the Caracas suburbs.
  • A culture of education, curiosity and integration is created, based on sporting values (respect, solidarity, conflict resolution, responsibility, etc.).
  • Gender equality is promoted and a new awareness exists of the role girls play within society (i.e. reduction in early pregnancies, prevention of gender-based violence).
  • A community is built through the involvement of key people (trainers, cooks, families and partners).
  • Institutions are more aware of sport’s relevance and their mutual collaboration is secured.
  • SENA research figures on children’s attitudes and disorder prevention are improved (from an affective, emotional, cognitive and social perspective).

Partner

From Sport to Work in the heart of disadvantaged neighbourhoods

Location and general information

Terminé
Location France
Start date 11/30/2018
End date 11/30/2019
Cost of the project €2,479,020
Foundation funding €200,000
Project identifier EUR 2018087
Partners Sport dans la Ville
Categories Personal development

Context

Sport dans la Ville works with 6,500 young people aged between 7 and 22 who live in disadvantaged areas of Lyon, Grenoble, Chambéry, Saint-Etienne, Lille and Paris.

The young participants live in areas targeted for urban regeneration, where access to training and employment is very limited. The rate of unemployment for 16- to 25-year-olds in the areas in which Sport dans la Ville operates is 45%.

Sport dans la Ville created the From Sport to Work programme to help every young person find employment. The programme aims to help 1,300 young people aged 15 and above to find training and employment opportunities by preparing them and enabling them to acquire skills and long-term employment through practical activities and individual supervision. Young participants in the sports programmes run by Sport dans la Ville also join the From Sport to Work programme.

The UEFA Foundation for Children is supporting this employment programme for the second year in a row.

Project content

At its centres, Sport dans la Ville provides continuous support for children from the age of six by offering academic, social and professional integration activities (generally lasting between 10 and 12 years).

 

Long-term support

  • Sport dans la Ville uses sport to pass on values and life skills such as confidence and personal development to young people living in the neighbourhoods in which it operates.
  • Sport dans la Ville supports the success and access to employment of young people from areas targeted for urban regeneration by offering them cultural opportunities and numerous pathways into employment.
  • By working alongside young people, their families and local stakeholders, Sport dans la Ville promotes the transformation of disadvantaged areas and fosters equal opportunities.

 

Five practical measures to help each young person acquire new skills and long-term employment:

  1. Individual support from a professional development coach (a permanent employee of Sport dans la Ville).
  2. Preparation for the world of work thanks to visits to companies and explanation of the rules of the workplace and recruitment procedures.
  3. Mentoring by company employees, who share their experience of work and support the young people with their professional integration.
  4. Discovery of new cultural horizons in France and abroad, enabling young people to gain initial work experience (internships, work-study contracts, fixed-term contracts, permanent contracts) and taking them out of their everyday environment in order to foster in them a desire to succeed.
  5. Sport dans la Ville programmes are designed to promote gender equality and cultural and social openness with a view to fighting the stigmatisation of young people from areas targeted for urban regeneration.

Objectives

  • To increase the number of participants in the From Sport to Work programme by opening ten new sports centres in three regions: Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, Île-de-France and Nord-Pas-de-Calais Picardie. These new centres will be able to accommodate more young people (1,300 in 2018/19).
  • To increase the involvement of young people at the existing Sport dans la Ville sports centres.
  • To help more young people find long-term employment.
  • To make employment more accessible for the young participants in the From Sport to Work programme.
  • To promote equal job opportunities for all, regardless of social background.

Expected results

  1. In 2018 and 2019, the structuring and development of the From Sport to Work programme are continuing at national level and partnerships are being strengthened in order to ensure the financial sustainability of the programme and enable the planned improvements to be made.
  2. Positive impact on the development of young participants in the From Sport to Work programme.
  3. Improved social integration of young participants in the programme.
  4. Positive effects on academic success.

Positive effects on professional integration.

Partner

Giovanni van Bronckhorst Foundation – SV GIO

Location and general information

Terminé
Location Netherlands
Start date 08/12/2019
End date Ongoing
Cost of the project €620,264
Foundation funding €50,000
Project identifier EUR-2019718
Partners Giovanni van Bronckhorst Foundation, Vriendenloterij, Shell, Rotterdam World Gateway, Friends of GvB Foundation, Athlead UK, Arsenal in the Community, Rangers Charity Foundation, Vlemmings & Van Zwam, Feyenoord Rotterdam N.V., Université Erasme de Rotterdam, Erasmus Sport Foundation, Access to Sports Project
Categories Personal development

Context

Inspired by a strong desire to give back to the community Giovanni van Bronckhorst (former captain of the Dutch national football team with 106 caps) and his wife Marieke established the Giovanni van Bronckhorst Foundation (GvB Foundation) in 2008. After supporting third-party projects for several years, the idea came about to alter the goals of the foundation and for it to start focusing on the development of its own projects.

What seemed to be lacking were projects aimed at closing gaps in learning and promoting sports and a healthy lifestyle to children, especially in the deprived parts of South Rotterdam, which is home to football club Feyenoord and the area where Giovanni grew up.

Giovanni and Marieke felt that the challenges of this area were something they could tackle, after all sport offered Giovanni many opportunities to grow and improve his life chances. Marieke's passion for teaching was born when she started studying for her primary school teaching qualifications. This was back when the pair were living in Glasgow and Giovanni was playing for Glasgow Rangers (1998–2001).

The GvB Foundation believes that every child deserves to become the best version of themselves. In football you have to learn quickly to create opportunities on the spot to improve the game. At S.V. GIO children are shown strategies and skills to recreate these opportunities in their day-to-day lives.

The Foundation also aims to provide children with a boost in their last two years at primary school in order to prepare them for a more successful educational path. At S.V. GIO children work hard and play hard, both individually and as a team, to overcome any academic obstacles and to re-establish a genuine sense of self-esteem.

Project content

S.V. GIO’s flagship project: best in class sports education

This sports education programme offers guidance to children in the last two years of Dutch primary school, coaching them like world-class athletes and helping them get off to a good start at secondary school. As part of an intensive 20-week programme, children meet up once a week to participate in sports and to work on the subjects they are struggling with at school. S.V. GIO also provides a programme for refugee children which helps them to settle into their new environment.

Sharing knowledge across Europe

The content of the project has been continually revised and developed over the last six years and the GvB Foundation is now sharing its expertise with other players, player foundations, clubs, club foundations, youth centres and educators across Europe.

Objectives

  • Help disadvantaged children in large cities to develop their core life skills, therefore overcoming personal and social barriers and improving their educational and career prospects, by engaging with them at a crucial developmental stage, i.e. the transition from primary to secondary school.
  • Promote sports participation, thereby improving the health of undernourished children.
  • Through Gio’s network of former clubs (such as Glasgow Rangers and FC Barcelona) and with the help of other organisations, encourage and embolden other clubs, players and managers to use this proven model to help many other children in cities and towns around the world.
  • Create an opportunity for underprivileged children who are unable to go on a summer holiday and give them an unforgettable educational and sports-focused summer with their favourite football club.
  • Broaden children’s horizons by giving them the opportunity to meet like-minded individuals.
  • Further develop and improve the content of S.V. GIO by exchanging coaches and knowledge internationally.

Project activities

Alongside the 20-week programme, two separate summer school events are being organised for summer 2019, one in London and one in Glasgow. Each course will last two days. There will be eight coaches training the 40 children attending, supervised by one head coach. The coaches are being trained by Paul van Zwam and Mano Radema, both from the Netherlands, who together with Giovanni developed the S.V. GIO learning method. The coaches are trained in line with this method and therefore the principles of the Feyenoord youth training and education programme also apply.

Expected results

Within the project there are several building blocks related to resiliency. These include, among many others, goal setting, problem solving, cooperation and taking responsibility. As such, the expectation is to see an enormous increase in resiliency. Children’s awareness of healthy eating and sporting activities should also be increased and it is hoped that they will have fun in the process!

 

Partner

Inclusive sport for development in Bangladesh

Location and general information

Closed
Location Bangladesh
Start date 10/01/2018
End date 09/30/2020
Cost of the project €117,450
Foundation funding €117,450
Project identifier ASI - 2018001
Partners Handicap International, Mymensingh Disabled People’s Organisation (Protibondhi Community Centre) and Tangail Disabled People’s Organisation (DPO)
Categories Children with disabilities - Personal development

Context

In 2007, the government of Bangladesh ratified the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, which promotes the rights to play and education of children with disabilities. However, a majority of children with disabilities remain out of primary education – more than 90%, according to a UNICEF study. This leads to children with disabilities being denied their basic rights, including access to education, as well as to sport and leisure activities. The situation is worse for girls, both with and without disabilities, in this patriarchal society where they are expected to conform to gender roles set out by the family and society in general.

Additionally, the poor capacity of local schools and clubs to respond to the needs of children with disabilities contributes to delayed physical and psychosocial development, low confidence, as well as social exclusion. Moreover, girls are often subject to physical and sexual abuse, and exploitation, which further lowers their self-esteem.

Project content

This project aims to contribute to the educational and social inclusion of children with and without disabilities.

School-based and child-led inclusive sports and leisure activities will be a great opportunity for boys and girls with and without disabilities to explore their potential, interact with each other in a safe environment and challenge social norms.

Parents, caregivers and teachers will help to create a better environment through sports clubs for children with disabilities, in particular girls, to promote their physical and psychosocial well-being.

A strong link will be established between the DPOs and the government sports department. The involvement of the school management committees and parental participation will contribute to the sustainability of the activities.

Objectives

  • Improve the participation and education of boys and girls with disabilities in inclusive sports in Bangladesh;
  • Give children with disabilities increased functional autonomy and access to inclusive sports and leisure activities, and to enable them to play a role in their own protection;
  • Better equip DPOs, schools and children’s clubs to promote inclusive sports and leisure activities, and to promote inclusion in education;
  • Reduce stigmatisation and discrimination against children with disabilities, thereby encouraging increased social participation in a protective community.

The project aims to increase access to safe accommodation and social care in Ioannina and Thessaloníki by expanding its existing arrangements to make 400 beds available in northern Greece. The beneficiaries in Ioannina will have access to a large community centre, which will be the venue for cooking events, language classes, Greek film nights, discussion groups, arts and craft events and child-friendly spaces.

In this way, Terre des Hommes will be supporting vulnerable children with caregivers by providing them with accommodation, and giving older unaccompanied minors (males aged 16–17) somewhere where they can live independently.

Furthermore, the project will focus on psychological support for refugee children, young people and their parents by using games, structured creative work, informal learning, theatre, sport, music, reading and any other activities that will improve self-esteem, trust, cooperation, well-being, safety and life skills.

Expected results

  • 800 children, including 400 with disabilities (200 girls), participating in inclusive sports and leisure activities, and education
  • 400 caregivers trained in appropriate caregiving for children with disabilities
  • 30 mainstream schoolteachers trained to support schoolchildren with disabilities
  • 20 sports coaches trained to adapt and facilitate inclusive sport
  • 2 DPOs trained to promote inclusion though inclusive sport

Partner

La Vie en Bleu

Location and general information

Ongoing
Location Switzerland
Start date 01/01/2018
End date 12/31/2020
Cost of the project €Eur 124,626
Foundation funding €Eur 124,626
Project identifier EUR 2018421
Partners Autisme Genève
Categories Children with disabilities

Context

Autism and its characteristics are still a mystery to many people. This lack of knowledge can lead to a certain fear, or even intolerance, of people who are different.

Parents of autistic children still have trouble placing them in mainstream education. Education is not straightforward for children with autism who, when they become adults, find it hard to get a job, largely because most employers are not sufficiently aware of the specific characteristics of autism, which can be disconcerting.

Autisme Genève therefore decided to launch an awareness campaign entitled ‘La Vie en Bleu’. Blue is the colour of autism and it colours the existence of everyone connected to this developmental disorder. By participating in and organising events, and disseminating information, Autisme Genève seeks to engage with the public, inviting people to discover what ‘life in blue’ is like. It is a life that Autisme Genève committee member Elvira David-Coppex describes as rich and amazing, but also exhausting and frustrating because of the way people view those who are different. Now ten years old, Autisme Genève has launched an initiative to raise awareness of autism among the general public and make them more welcoming of people with autism.

Project content

The association has developed three key messages to raise awareness of autism:

  • 1st message: Make room for diversity!
  • 2nd message: Autism is not an illness; it is a neurodevelopmental disorder
    that can be hugely enriching if dealt with in the right way.
  • 3rd message: With early diagnosis and support, autism can be successfully managed.

Objectives

  • Teach people about autism in order to change public perceptions
  • Encourage parents not to be afraid if they suspect their child has autism and help them access appropriate care as early as possible
  • Inform paediatricians and childcare professionals so they can identify autistic characteristics and ensure support is provided quickly

Project activities

The project aims to increase access to safe accommodation and social care in Ioannina and Thessaloníki by expanding its existing arrangements to make 400 beds available in northern Greece. The beneficiaries in Ioannina will have access to a large community centre, which will be the venue for cooking events, language classes, Greek film nights, discussion groups, arts and craft events and child-friendly spaces.

In this way, Terre des Hommes will be supporting vulnerable children with caregivers by providing them with accommodation, and giving older unaccompanied minors (males aged 16–17) somewhere where they can live independently.

Furthermore, the project will focus on psychological support for refugee children, young people and their parents by using games, structured creative work, informal learning, theatre, sport, music, reading and any other activities that will improve self-esteem, trust, cooperation, well-being, safety and life skills.

Expected results

Since the start of 2018, Autisme Genève has released a video and an information brochure that are available to everyone.

In April, the focus was on sport with ‘La Vivicitta court en bleu pour l’autisme’, a mass-participation race involving hundreds of runners dressed in blue.

Autisme Genève was also chosen as one of the beneficiaries of the Match for Solidarity, organised by UEFA and the United Nations office in Geneva.

In May, a stand at the Geneva marathon enabled the association to reach out to thousands of people.

On 9 June 2018, the campaign was highlighted at the start of the Bol d’Or, when three boats sailed with the words ‘je navigue en bleu pour l’autisme’ (I’m sailing in blue for autism) on their sail.

The publicity spot for the ‘La Vie en Bleu’ campaign was shown at every screening during the Cinétransat festival. A special evening was also organised, for which all viewers were invited to wear blue.

On 14 September, Josef Schovanec, an autistic philosopher and writer, was welcomed by a crowd of 350 people at an autism conference in Geneva.  The following day, the screening of Sophie Robert’s film ‘Enfants autistes: bienvenus à l’école’ was followed by a debate about inclusive schools, which was attended by more than 100 people.

On 13 October, a scientific conference attended by 400 delegates heard from leading experts in the TEACCH approach, which focuses on the specific needs of people with autism.

2018 will end with the Escalade race, when Autisme Genève supporters will come together to form a huge blue wave of runners and walkers.

 

Partner

Football for Inclusion – Everyone invited to the pitch!

Location and general information

Closed
Location Moreno, Argentina
Start date 08/10/2018
End date Ongoing
Cost of the project €155,476
Foundation funding €104,400
Project identifier SAM – 01xx
Partners Asociación Civil Andar
Categories Access to Sport - Children with disabilities - Personal development

Context

People with disabilities have fewer opportunities to take part in football and integrate into mainstream society because they face various social or cultural barriers and discriminatory attitudes. This violates their human rights. In addition, they find it difficult to access public facilities, education, healthcare, employment and cultural and sports activities.

More than 1 billion people around the world live with some type of disability; at least 2 million of them live in Buenos Aires, the focus of Andar’s social intervention work.

Project content

Through a combination of work experience, sport, art, cultural and health-related activities, Andar promotes the inclusion of people with disabilities. Its Inclusive Football League uses the power of football to promote and foster the active participation of people with disabilities in society, while also addressing stigmatisation and prejudice.

With the foundation’s support, Andar will build the local community’s first inclusive and accessible sports facility for children with and without disabilities to aid their integration. In an effort to bring the best out of every individual and foster equal participation, it takes account of the physical, communicational and methodological aspects of accessibility.

Objectives

Andar’s programme aims to:

  • promote social change through football;
  • generate job opportunities;
  • promote autonomy and develop skills and abilities, empowering the people and communities involved; and
  • reveal the potential of people with disabilities.

Project activities

A total of 3,633 people currently participate in Andar programmes:

  • Therapeutic space: 59 people with disabilities
  • Inclusive social businesses: 86 people with disabilities employed per month
  • Inclusive Football League (LFI): 2,488 participants per year
  • Liga Buenos Aires: 920 participants per year
  • National League: 1,296 participants at national level
  • Inclusive Football School: 172 participants all year round, and their families
  • LatAm Festival: 100 participants from 10 countries across the region
  • Training and educational visits: 1,000 participants per year

Expected results

  • Opportunities to develop the potential of people with disabilities
  • Creation of facilities in which diversity is accepted and valued as part of the human condition
  • Information, tools and new training approaches that promote human rights
  • Access to sport for social change

Partner

Humanitarian crisis in Greece

Location and general information

Terminé
Location Thessaloníki and Ioannina (Greece)
Start date 04/01/2018
End date 12/31/2018
Cost of the project €1,474,495
Foundation funding €78,000
Project identifier EUR - 0148
Partners Terre des Hommes
Categories

Context

The bombing in Afrin and Ghouta in Syria, and the escalating violence in parts of Afghanistan is driving people to flee. According to the UNHCR, 21,887 people have crossed the Mediterranean since the beginning of the year, one-third of whom have arrived on Greek islands. The number of new arrivals was 33% higher in the first four months of 2018 than during the same period in 2017. The emergency reception centres for refugees and migrants are overcrowded. At the same time, national organisations and NGOs are forced to close shelters and programmes for the youngest of those affected by war, conflict, migration and displacement because of administrative bottlenecks. Homelessness among asylum seekers has become an issue because of inadequate procedures which do not guarantee pre-registration.

In 2017, Terre des Hommes provided safe accommodation for 361 vulnerable families and young people. It currently manages 19 apartments in Ioannina. As part of the same protection package, Terre des Hommes has provided legal counselling and representation to over 1,250 refugees and migrants, and mental health and psychological services to more than 1,500. In addition, access to medical services has been ensured in 70% of all cases.

Project content

Terre des Hommes will continue its mission of supporting Greek authorities and civil society by assisting with the emergency reception of refugees and migrants, supporting their effective integration and helping to build integrated and sustainable child protection systems.

The accommodation programme run for nine months, from April to December 2018, and will be implemented in Thessaloníki and Ioannina.

Objectives

  • To expand the existing accommodation programme.
  • To provide the bare minimum of accommodation and cash.
  • To guarantee a range of protection services, including daily social work, protection activities, legal counselling and interpreting.
  • To ensure children have access to adequate child protection services.

Project activities

The project aims to increase access to safe accommodation and social care in Ioannina and Thessaloníki by expanding its existing arrangements to make 400 beds available in northern Greece. The beneficiaries in Ioannina will have access to a large community centre, which will be the venue for cooking events, language classes, Greek film nights, discussion groups, arts and craft events and child-friendly spaces.

In this way, Terre des Hommes will be supporting vulnerable children with caregivers by providing them with accommodation, and giving older unaccompanied minors (males aged 16–17) somewhere where they can live independently.

Furthermore, the project will focus on psychological support for refugee children, young people and their parents by using games, structured creative work, informal learning, theatre, sport, music, reading and any other activities that will improve self-esteem, trust, cooperation, well-being, safety and life skills.

Expected results

Terre des Hommes is the only remaining international child-focused NGO in northern Greece. The housing programme is essential to ensure urgent action to protect migrant children, prevent child exploitation and provide humanitarian aid to children and their families.

Partner

Field in a Box – Rio Doce, Brazil

Location and general information

CONTEXT

Following the successful establishment of Field in a Box pitches in Madrid, Mragowo (in north-eastern Poland) and Cape Town, the UEFA Foundation for Children and FedEx are working together on the construction of a new pitch in Rio Doce, on the outskirts of Recife. The global not-for-profit network streetfootballworld has helped to identify a suitable location for the pitch and chosen local charity love.fútbol to maintain the pitch and ensure its sustainable use.

PROJECT CONTENT

The UEFA Foundation for Children has been running its Field in a Box project since 2016 with the aim of providing enclosed, fully functional artificial football pitches to impoverished communities. These pitches are environmentally sustainable and quick to install.

OBJECTIVES

This project aims to improve the lives of young people and breathe new life into disadvantaged communities. By providing opportunities to play football, the foundation seeks to improve children’s health and support their personal development, while teaching them football’s core values (respect, team spirit, etc.).

love.fútbol is a global initiative dedicated to giving people access to football where communities lack safe and inclusive spaces for sport. Since its inception in 2006, the organisation has encouraged and taught communities to design, plan, build, manage and ultimately redefine football pitches as community assets and platforms for sustainable social change. In a participatory process, love.fútbol empowers communities to build a football pitch, providing guidance, finance and raw materials and mobilising local resources, while placing ownership of the entire process in the hands of the community in order to ensure the sustainability of the project.
The construction of this pitch in Rio Doce – where almost 60% of the population live below the poverty line, with incomes averaging less than US$100 a month – will give local children and young people a safe place to play and access to various development opportunities. love.fútbol’s local partner, Pazear, will use the pitch as a platform for its football activities, using sport to foster peace-building, gender equality and social transformation.

RESULTS TO DATE AND EXPECTED OUTCOMES

  • Training sessions will take place using the football3 method.
  • Concepts and studies will be developed with a view to promoting the continued use of football as a vehicle for peace-building, gender equality and social integration.
  • Over the next year, hundreds of participants are expected to take part in football-related programmes implemented on the new pitch.
  • In addition to weekly football sessions, the pitch will also provide a platform for weekly educational and monthly cultural activities.

PARTNERS



Logo street football world

Field in a Box – Pirapora do Bom Jesus, Brazil

Situation géographique et informations générales

Context

Konami Holdings Corporation – a Japanese digital entertainment company and a UEFA Champions League sponsor – was willing to work with the UEFA Foundation for Children and take the Field in a Box concept to Brazil. The global not-for-profit network streetfootballworld helped Konami to identify a suitable location for its pitch – in Pirapora do Bom Jesus, on the outskirts of Sao Paulo – and chose local charity Fundação EPROCAD to maintain the pitch and ensure its sustainable use.

Project content

The UEFA Foundation for Children has been running its Field in a Box project since 2016 with the aim of providing enclosed, fully functional artificial football pitches to impoverished communities. These pitches are environmentally sustainable and quick to install.

Objectives

This project aims to improve the lives of young people and breathe new life into disadvantaged communities. By providing opportunities to play football, the foundation seeks to improve children’s health and support their personal development, while teaching them football’s core values (respect, team spirit, etc.).
Fundação EPROCAD is based in Santana de Parnaiba – a suburb of Sao Paulo – and uses sport, education and culture to help children, adolescents and their families to integrate into society. Its work is aimed primarily at children and young people from poor families, providing activities that contribute to social development. Through its projects, the charity gives participants access to sporting, educational and cultural activities that can help to improve their quality of life. It also offers targeted support in specific instances, as well as guidance and referrals for specialist care where necessary.
Pirapora do Bom Jesus is one of the poorest areas of the country, with 27.8% of the population living on incomes totalling less than half of the minimum wage. Heads of households have an average age of 44, with 17.4% under the age of 30. With no access to basic services such as health and education, life there is a struggle.

Results to date and expected outcomes 

  • This newly constructed pitch is the only place in the area where football can really be played.
  • Fundação EPROCAD will use the pitch to implement football-based programmes, as well as encouraging local people to make use of these new facilities.
  • Located next to a local day care centre, the pitch is ideal for physical education classes and recreational activities.
  • It is expected that about 2,000 children and young people from the local community will benefit from this initiative.

Partners



Logo street football world

 

Football Film Festival

Situation géographique et informations générales

Context

The Foundation of Polish Soccer is founded Polish Football Association. The foundation’s aim is to promote and develop football in Poland, to take action to develop and raise the level amateur football, and to support the activities of the Polish Football Association.

In 2017, Foundation of Polish Soccer initiated the first edition of Football Film Festival in Cracow in connection with UEFA EURO Under-21. This festival had the aim to promote football culture by seemingly football and film. This innovative concept was very successful and an innovative way to communicate with younger generations who had free access to the event.

The European Union Statistics on Income and Living Conditions (EU-SILC) showed clearly that kids from the poorest social group in Poland are in need of support to help them out of poverty giving them options and perspectives for personal development.

The Foundation of Polish Soccer wants to use the social and educational dimension of the Festival Film Festival by allocating a special free ticket pool for children and orphanages.

Project content

The football film festival was held in Warsaw from 25 to 26 May 2018.

The purpose is to promote sport and film culture especially among children and young people.

This year, the festival screened the most important documentaries of recent months, reflecting on the modern football world – its issues, absurdities and challenges, along with film portraits of football legends.

The festival had three sections:

  1. the main section included full-length documentaries produced after 1 January 2017
  2. the Krótka Piłka short-film section included both professional and amateur works
  3. the retro section looked back on important, yet forgotten films with a football theme, and we screened the best documentary along with feature films about football produced before 2016

The young participants had the opportunity to meet filmmakers, athletes and journalists.

On the sports side, a period was reserved exclusively for children to participate in practical activities on the playing field to promote physical and mental development.

Activities included:

  • film screenings dedicated exclusively to children – free entry;
  • zone of football activity at the cinema – trainings with trainers, football players from youth clubs
  • meetings with footballers and coaches,
  • distribution of football equipment
  • meetings with filmmakers, actors, publishers
  • exhibition of football posters

The novelty of the second edition of the Festival was to give the opportunity to youngsters to submit their own film to the festival organiser.

Objectives

  • With the support of the ministry of national education, the objective is to involve pupils from 459 primary schools, high schools and technical schools.
  • Support local communities and children from orphanages
  • Give access to football and culture to children in the poorest social groups and give them a new perspective of personal development and empowerment

 

Expected results

  • Attendance of 2,800 children aged 7-16 from schools and orphanages for free film screenings and football classes
  • Promote and develop football among children in need so that they practise sport for their physical and mental well-being, to gain self-confidence and new perspectives and believe in a better future
  • Promote and develop grassroots football in Poland

Partner