We Welcome Young Refugees

Location and general information

Ongoing
Location Kraainem, Belgium
Start date 11/30/2022
End date 12/31/2024
Cost of the project €140,000
Foundation funding €50,000
Project identifier 20231120
Partners Royal Europa ’90 Kraainem FC
Categories Access to Sport - Conflict victims - Employability - Personal development

Context

Royal Europa ’90 Kraainem FC is an amateur football club that has established itself in Belgium as ‘the club of diversity’. In response to the sudden increase in the number of migrants and refugees arriving in Europe, in September 2015 the club decided to launch an integration project showing how to support young refugees and asylum seekers, most of them unaccompanied minors. Since spring 2022, the club has also been working with Ukrainian children.

Project goals

The primary objective is to support asylum seekers and refugees, helping them to get active again and feel at home in their community. In doing so, the club also wishes to share its experience and approach with other stakeholders and civil society organisations that can take inspiration from what’s being done and set up projects of their own.

Project content

The club hosts groups of young refugees and asylum seekers, boys and girls, every afternoon during the football season, from September to May. They take part in discussions and train with the club’s youth teams. This initiative is intended as part of a long-term process of integration – a process in which we believe football plays a vital part.

Partners

Sustainable future for all

Location and general information

Ongoing
Location Hungary, Budapest, Abaújkér and Márokpapi
Start date 01/01/2024
End date 12/31/2024
Cost of the project €64,840
Foundation funding €50,000
Project identifier 20230630
Partners Oltalom Sport Association
Categories Access to Sport - Conflict victims - Employability - Gender Equality - Healthy lifestyle - Personal development

Context

Access to quality services is the privilege of the few. Traditional institutions struggle to provide services they are originally bound to. With the arrival of large numbers of refugees, they now need to prioritise, increasing the tension between groups who are in line for the limited social support. These circumstances make the work of NGOs more essential, as they try to replace or supplement the efforts of such institutions to foster the social and academic inclusion of athletes.

Project goals

  • Increased physical and mental well-being
  • Strengthen and develop transferable skills
  • Empower of athletes
  • Support the social inclusion of marginalized and at-risk groups

Project content

Oltalom aims to continue its core activities, which focus on strengthening and developing the transferable skills of athletes, who, due to various external reasons, are not thriving in the traditional academic environment. By using the power of football, Oltalom aims to engage children and teenagers in activities, which would also support their development and empowerment. The various on and off the pitch programmes include sport and social activities (e.g. football training, national and international tournaments, employability programmes, scholarship programmes, activities for female athletes) and support the inclusion of marginalised and at-risk groups, including Roma people, refugees and third country nationals arriving from conflict zones.

Partner

SMS – “Sportsmanship in a Multicultural Society”

Location and general information

Ongoing
Location Israel
Start date 02/21/2024
End date 12/31/2024
Cost of the project €49,513
Foundation funding €29,871
Project identifier 20230231
Partners A New Way (ANW)
Categories Access to Sport - Conflict victims - Personal development - Strengthening partnerships

Context

Israeli society is riven by widening gaps among different population groups. Of these, the tension between the State’s Jewish and Arab citizens is acknowledged as the most significant. One cause of this tension is the fact that Jews and Arabs have few opportunities for positive, meaningful interaction. Israel’s divided education system exacerbates these gaps, preventing meaningful encounters, reinforcing fears and misconceptions, and thwarting the creation of a basis for future collaboration. “A New Way” (ANW) acts as a unifying force and challenges the existing rifts in Israeli Jewish-Arab relations.

The October 7th attack and the war that ensued has thrust us into uncharted territory, amplifying the importance and urgency of our work. Now, more than ever, we must begin healing and reconciling Israeli society by mending the intricate fabric of Jewish and Arab relations. By creating a critical mass of individuals dedicated to working together, we can pave "A New Way" forward—a path towards a more peaceful future for Jews and Arabs in Israel.

Project goals

  • Promote a peaceful, tolerant and inclusive society.
  • Create a good first experience of multicultural collaboration among Arab and Jewish school students developing their desire and ability to work together.
  • Bring knowledge regarding the ‘other’ society and promote shared values and ideas that will foster understanding a more tolerant and sustainable future for Israeli society.
  • Strengthen Israeli society and promote a new generation that, through collaboration and joint action, will improve Jewish-Arab relations.

Project content

Project Structure: In the schools where we operate, ANW holds educational programs and multi-year processes that allow children and their teaching staff to meet and get to know their counterparts from the ‘other’ community, learn and be exposed to the neighbours’ culture, develop a common dialogue, find shared values and work together towards common goals and objectives. As part of the educational process and in order to enable students to work together, there is an essential need to hold workshops that will prepare the children and help them to develop the necessary skills and basic ability to act together and engage in real multicultural cooperation. Recognizing the power of sport to create collaboration between children from different groups and sectors, our organization chose to focus on tools from the world of sports and use them to build the ability to collaborate during the initial stages of the program. The project presented here is aimed precisely at addressing this need. As part of the project, we will hold unique workshops that create collaboration using tools and methods we have developed with our partners. This collaboration phase is built on three different activities to maximize our flexibility and ability to adjust each day of activities to the unique nature, age, needs, and level of development of the different participants in our educational process.

• “Challenges in Nature” day in collaboration with "Rikmae Enoshit" (Human Texture in English) - a local group of experts that develops collaboration workshops based on sports and outdoor challenges. “HUMAN TEXTURE - A house of meaningful group activity. We specialize in group bonding activities which include sports and outdoor challenges, leading to cooperation, teamwork, leadership development, initiative, imagination and creativity. We believe in passing on a message through experience, allowing close communication and inviting the participants to go through a thorough and meaningful process in a joyful and accessible way.”

• Acro-Yoga: The activities and tools used during this workshop were built with the assistance of “The Association for the Development of Circus Arts in Israel.” Circus and acro-yoga are non-verbal art forms that can overcome the barrier of language, while simultaneously reducing fears and building trust. The joint physical activities necessitate mutual acquaintance and trust, and in a human pyramid everyone is equal, without differences of race or religion. Moreover, acro-yoga requires that participants must work with each other and learn to know and trust one another. Just one day leads to remarkable changes in the way Israeli Jewish and Arab school students relate to each other.

• Fair-Play Football: The fair-play football workshop was built with the assistance of Iddo Diamant, former director of activities in "Tzav Pius", a leading specialist in educational development through sports. "Iddo has an MBA in Social Leadership from Ben Gurion University and has vast experience in the field of education both as a program manager and a content developer. Iddo believes in working in an interdisciplinary way to merge sports and education as a single field bringing together his experience as a basketball coach, educator and academic.”

Partner

Football as a tool for social integration !

Location and general information

Ongoing
Location Lithuania, Vilnius
Start date 01/01/2024
End date 12/31/2024
Cost of the project €66,450
Foundation funding €42,000
Project identifier 20230125
Partners Vilnius Social Club
Categories Access to Sport - Conflict victims - Gender Equality - Personal development

Context

Lithuania has faced significant tensions in recent years: stress and anxiety have soared as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, the war in Ukraine has led to strained relations with the Russian community and an influx of Ukrainian migrants, and inflation and rising poverty have exacerbated inequalities. Football is not accessible to vulnerable children and young people because of the high fees and a focus on performance rather than participation.

Project goals

The focus of this programme is on bringing about qualitative change in the life of each participant, rather than achieving sporting results. The key aims are to help young people to develop the skills and qualities they need to broaden their options for the future, including social skills, independence, communication, teamwork, problem-solving and a sense of responsibility, and to raise awareness of the unique method used. The project aims to promote social integration, equal opportunities and a sense of belonging for all members of the community.

Project content

The programme consists of football training sessions where children of all genders, nationalities and communities are welcome, ensuring inclusivity and equal access. Over the course of the programme, participants learn how to work as a team, manage their emotions, solve problems constructively, interact with peers and adults, and reflect on their experiences. The Vilnius Social Club informs the wider community about its unique approach to social integration by distributing documentation and producing publications, sharing success stories, providing training, collaborating with other organisations and making use of digital platforms.

Partner

Inclusive Sport and Life Skills

Location and general information

Ongoing
Location Kenya, Nairobi
Start date 02/01/2024
End date 12/31/2024
Cost of the project €82,474
Foundation funding €10,886
Project identifier 20231046
Partners Mathare Youth Sports Association (MYSA)
Categories Access to Sport - Employability - Environmental protection - Gender Equality - Healthy lifestyle - Personal development - Strengthening partnerships

Context

Mathare slum is one of the poorest and most densely populated slums in Africa, where drugs and crime are ever-present. A lack of adequate sports facilities and organised grassroots sport for children and teenagers in informal settlements means that many turn to crime, substance abuse and all kinds of vices. There has been an increase in gender-based violence, teenage pregnancies and new HIV infections owing to poverty and a lack of knowledge and information.

Project goals

  • Promote behaviour change among children, teenagers and women, to help reduce the issues affecting youth
  • Create a social support structure for marginalised groups, including the urban refugees, and facilitate acceptance in their host communities to promote peaceful coexistence
  • Mainstream gender in sport and address issues affecting young women and girls in sport
  • Create a safe space for marginalised groups including urban refugees

Project content

  • Sports for All football league: We will run an inclusive football league in the community that we serve, where everyone will be allowed to participate, irrespective of their social economic status, religion, education background, gender, sexual orientation and culture.
  • Capacity-building: We will enhance the skills of our community coaches, teenagers and children through capacity development training.
  • Life skills education: We will provide training in life skills for children, teenagers and women living in informal settlements in Nairobi.
  • Coordinated meetings: We will hold monthly meetings with the stakeholders to check on project progress.
  • Community outreach: We will conduct community outreach to raise awareness of issues affecting their communities, g. sexual reproductive health, substance abuse, etc.
  • Monitoring and evaluation: We will evaluate the progress of project activities every three months.

Partner

Génération Sportive – The Athletic Generation

Location and general information

Ongoing
Location Morocco
Start date 01/01/2024
End date 12/31/2024
Cost of the project €200,534
Foundation funding €100,000
Project identifier 20231154
Partners Tibu Maroc
Categories Access to Sport - Healthy lifestyle - Infrastructure and equipment - Personal development

Context

In the target regions of the Génération Sportive project, the lack of adequate sports facilities and physical activity opportunities for children is a major issue. This not only affects their physical health but also their social and cognitive development.

Project goals

  • Encourage 12,000 children to adopt a healthy and active lifestyle through fun and educational sports activities
  • Develop children's motor, cognitive and social skills
  • Raise awareness among children about the importance of a balanced and healthy lifestyle
  • Foster the overall well-being of children, taking account of their physical and mental health
  • Ensure that all children take part in regular physical activity

Project content

The project addresses the issues by providing schools with sports resources (people and equipment) and raising awareness of the importance of sport for children's growth and well-being. This initiative is essential for promoting a healthy and active lifestyle from a young age in these regions.

  • Regular fun sports sessions to develop motor skills
  • Interactive workshops on healthy lifestyle habits, including a balanced diet, personal hygiene and sufficient sleep
  • Educational activities focused on the UN's 17 Sustainable Development Goals to inspire engagement with the environment and society
  • Teacher training on running sports activities independently and promoting a healthy lifestyle

Partner

Enhancing left-behind children’s social resilience through sports

Location and general information

Ongoing
Location Yunnan Province, China
Start date 03/01/2024
End date 03/31/2025
Cost of the project €100,000
Foundation funding €100,000
Project identifier 20230441
Partners Plan International Hong Kong
Categories Access to Sport - Gender Equality - Healthy lifestyle - Personal development

Context

Nearly 70% of middle school students in Jinping County, Yunnan Province, China are classified as ‘left-behind children’. These children are disproportionately vulnerable to emotional disturbances, psychological distress and other related challenges that have an impact on their physical and mental well-being and their academic performance. Girls are particularly disadvantaged thanks to ingrained gender stereotypes.

Project goals

The main objectives of this project are to help middle school students to develop their social-emotional learning (SEL) skills, to challenge gender stereotypes in sports and to bring about transformative change among girls and boys as well as their families, schools and communities.

Project content

To achieve the objectives, the following activities are planned in ten schools:

  • Conduct capacity-building training with SEL modules for school sports teachers
  • Train peer educators to build SEL skills through sports activities
  • Help and guide peer educators to organise club-based sports activities for school students with a focus on building SEL skills
  • Organise events raising awareness of gender issues among teachers, students and parents
  • Conduct girls’ football tournaments among schools, with SEL integration

Partner

FootSteps of Hope

Location and general information

Ongoing
Location India, Nagpur
Start date 01/01/2024
End date 12/31/2024
Cost of the project €50,821
Foundation funding €36,011
Project identifier 20230438
Partners Krida Vikas Sanstha
Categories Access to Sport - Personal development

Context

The COVID-19 lockdown caused havoc to the vulnerable psyches of disadvantaged slum children. Many became embroiled in antisocial or illegal activities, and then spent time in young offender institutions before returning to unsavoury disruptive habits on their release, which in turn often has a detrimental effect on their peers. The reason? Neither the young offender institutions nor the slums in which they live offer a conducive environment for healthy reformative activities. Consequently, these children are stigmatised and lose their self-esteem.

Project goals

  • To promote the social reintegration and rehabilitation of 350 young participants who have a history of antisocial activities or are considered to be at high risk of delinquency by giving them a safe space to play
  • Equipping the participants with basic life skills such as teamwork, communication and good health and hygiene habits to foster their personal development and self-esteem
  • To provide a platform for children to learn and play football and take part in grassroots tournaments for 350 participants

Project content

The programme uses the Sport for Development pedagogical approach to impart life skills through football training. Participating in a team sport gives delinquent and at-risk children a new focus and a better way to channel their energy, helping them to regain their self-esteem and reintegrate into society as law-abiding citizens.

Partner

Ensuring Continued Access to Education for Afghan Girls

Location and general information

Ongoing
Location Afghanistan
Start date 01/01/2024
End date 01/31/2025
Cost of the project €701,644
Foundation funding €25,000
Project identifier 20230601
Partners Canadian Women for Women in Afghanistan (CW4WAfghan)
Categories Gender Equality

Context

Since the Taliban’s return to power in August 2021, more than 80 decrees have been issued that restrict Afghan women and girls’ rights, including a ban on the right to learn. This is an alarming violation of fundamental human rights and poses a grave threat to the progress, prosperity and well-being of the nation.

By leveraging technology, this project aims to bridge the educational gap and empower Afghan girls – both those who remain in the country and those who have been displaced – through access to high-quality learning materials and educational opportunities.

Project goals

  • Increased access to secondary education for out-of-school female Afghan students
  • Professional development and employment opportunities for Afghan women, enabling them to continue teaching virtually, whether in Afghanistan or in exile
  • Access to free, high-quality resources in Afghan languages so that students can further their education, educators can continue their careers and families can instil a love of reading in their children

Project content

The Darakht-e Danesh (DD) Academi is a collection of virtual educational tools that allow Afghan women and girls who have been cut off from conventional education to access high-quality educational resources and reach their full potential.

It consists of three virtual strands:

  • DD Library: a free repository of more than 7,000 resources on 127 different subjects in nine languages (including minority Afghan languages). With UEFA’s support, CW4WAfghan will be able to develop, translate and include new resources on nutrition, sport, inclusion, gender equity and healthy living.
  • DD Classroom: a live virtual secondary school for Afghan girls in grades 7 to 12, providing an internationally recognised qualification upon graduation. In 2024, this will be expanded to Afghan students living in neighbouring regions such as Pakistan and Tajikistan. The teachers hired are all qualified, and priority is given to out-of-work female teachers who have been denied employment in Afghanistan. All students based in Afghanistan receive ‘learning plus baskets’ (educational materials and nutritious food staples for their whole family).
  • DD Courses: professional development for educators, including DD Classroom teachers. Educators can complete a variety of online trainings, at their own pace, on a variety of topics, including virtual teaching, basic computer and digital literacy, English for beginners, an introduction to trauma, and creating gender-responsive learning environments.

Partners

Her Voice. Her Choice.

Location and general information

Ongoing
Location Nepal, Lumbini Province
Start date 03/01/2024
End date 02/28/2025
Cost of the project €120,000
Foundation funding €25,000
Project identifier 20230020
Partners Atoot
Categories Access to Sport - Children with disabilities - Gender Equality - Personal development

Context

In rural villages of southern Nepal, women and girls have no voice and are effectively excluded from life. Girls are isolated in their communities and given no decision-making power. From birth, they are expected to be nether seen nor heard, and to obey the boys and men. Their sole purpose is to become wives, mothers and homemakers.

There is an urgent need for safe, empowering spaces for these marginalised girls facing intergenerational inequalities, discrimination and injustice. The following problems in particular need addressing:

  • Child marriage: Kapilvastu district has one of the highest rates of child marriage in Nepal. 62% of girls get married between the ages of 10 and 19. The national average is 41% (Nepal Census, 2011).
  • Gender-based violence: Kapilvastu has one of the highest rates of gender discrimination and gender-based violence in the country (Nepal Census, 2011).
  • Early school dropouts: Girls’ need for education is systematically ignored and school dropouts are rampant among girls aged 11 to 14 (UNICEF). They work in servitude to their families, preparing to serve their future husband and his family.
  • Dowry system: Although it is illegal in Nepal, the dowry system is one of the most pressing issues facing girls in Kapilvastu. From birth, a girl child is seen as a burden and a liability due to the high price of dowries and, although unreported, female foeticide/infanticide is common.
  • Girls have no voice: Girls are isolated in their communities and given no decision-making power. They have no say in their own lives.

Project goals

  • Help girls break out of the vicious cycles that trap them, enabling them to make their own life choices
  • Provide multiple platforms for girls who have never had a voice to gain confidence and form empowering relationships
  • Create multiple safe spaces where girls can come together in a progressive environment to play, learn, and surround themselves with positive peers

Project content

  • Football sessions: Atoot conducts football sessions five times a week. These inclusive sessions give girls an opportunity to play sport and to meet, connect with and learn from their peers in a fun, encouraging and thought-provoking environment. The sessions focus not only on football skills but on a plethora of soft skills, offering an empowering safe space in which to be bold, take chances and gain mental, physical and emotional strength together. Girls learn about self-worth, leadership, conflict resolution, fair play, teamwork, time management, taking responsibility for themselves and their team-mates, and holistic, long-term capacity building.
  • Educational classes: Atoot organises extra classes in English, Nepali and arts & crafts five times a week to supplement the girls' studies at understaffed, often poorly taught public schools. The classes are specially designed to cater to children with different levels of literacy and continuous in-class assessments are conducted to help Atoot staff tailor the lessons to the girls’ needs. The educational classes and football sessions are intertwined, so that the girls can practise what they encounter in the classroom and on the pitch. They learn literacy, awareness, language skills, overall comprehension and alternative ways of thinking in a fun, caring and nurturing environment, increasing their educational capacity exponentially, which then encourages their families to give them more opportunities and keep them out of childhood marriage.
  • Life skills workshops: Atoot conducts life-skills workshops two to three times a week on various personal, cultural and societal issues directly affecting the project beneficiaries, as identified in discussions with the girls themselves. Topics include the girl child, gender-based violence, child marriage, human trafficking, savings, children’s rights, female empowerment, hygiene, environmental issues, etc. By broaching topics otherwise not discussed or taught in schools, families or the community, the girls bolster their capacity to break down norms ingrained in the local society.
  • Community engagement: Regular community engagement builds trust within communities and helps raise awareness and promote advocacy around the grave social and societal issues affecting the girls. We ensure that local voices are heard and opinions are valued, promoting greater acceptance in the community.

Partner

Football for All

Location and general information

Ongoing
Location Vietnam
Start date 01/01/2024
End date 12/31/2024
Cost of the project €59,165
Foundation funding €48,306
Project identifier 20230184
Partners Football Association of Norway/Football for All in Vietnam (NFF/FFAV)
Categories Access to Sport - Employability - Gender Equality - Healthy lifestyle - Infrastructure and equipment - Personal development - Strengthening partnerships

Context

Men and boys enjoy a sociocultural advantage among many of Vietnam’s ethnic minorities, while girls – expected to grow up to be wives and mothers – are often deprived of education, forced into early marriage and given few opportunities. Despite national laws and international conventions prohibiting it, child marriage remains a widespread phenomenon in Vietnam, particularly in rural areas. Although the practice is in decline, it was estimated as recently as 2019 that 14% of women in the country had been married before their 18th birthday.

Moreover, boys benefit from a cultural preference for males rooted in customary laws and practices, such as the belief that only men can perform ancestral rites. Children see themselves and their roles and relationships through the lens of socially constructed gender norms, which directly affects their own attitudes and behaviour.

In the Quảng Tri and Cao Bằng provinces, football is perceived as being only for boys, which is a form of gender discrimination that excludes girls and limits their opportunities.

Project goals

To raise awareness of gender rights, foster equitable practices among ethnic minority groups, empower women and girls, and equip them with leadership and life skills by supporting their equal participation in a football and life skills programme.

Project content

  • Set up 15 grassroots football clubs in Quảng Tri and 15 in Cao Bằng, replicating the FFAV model developed in Hà Giang. FFAV uses football to challenge stereotypes, promote gender equality and provide all children with an enabling environment by developing school-based clubs where equal participation of girls and boys is mandatory. Training sessions are held once or twice a week and, in parallel, girls are mentored by Women Win in Goal facilitators who teach them about economic empowerment, leadership, gender rights and reproductive health. This life skills programme helps to build girls’ self-esteem and gives them positive role models and trusted women to turn to for support.
    • Train teachers, volunteers, parents and other interested locals in coaching and refereeing, as well as teaching them how to attract participants and make their clubs fun, safe and inclusive. The training takes place over four days and is delivered by the Vietnam Football Federation using its grassroots coaching manual.
    • Train female teachers as Women Win in Goal facilitators in a three-day course delivered by FFAV’s key facilitators.
  • Continue to provide technical support and football equipment to the 30 football clubs in Hà Giang province.
  • Organise 30 Fun Football Festivals where both boys and girls can play football matches as well as games teaching life skills that they might have not experienced before. These festivals are also an opportunity to promote the clubs, attract supporters and volunteers and introduce the life skills campaign to more people.
  • Hold two internal evaluation and planning workshops for all clubs using a participatory approach, whereby coaches and Women Win in Goal facilitators evaluate their club’s activities, share experiences and learn best practices. The outcomes will be documented in a final report used for advocacy and to inform the activity plan for the coming years.

Partner

Canchas Libres, Fields of Freedom

Location and general information

Ongoing
Location Costa Rica
Start date 05/01/2024
End date 03/31/2026
Cost of the project €250 204
Foundation funding €97 846
Project identifier 20230483
Partners Fundación GOLEES
Categories Access to Sport - Gender Equality - Personal development

Context

After four years of creating spaces where we have reduced the rates of violence against girls and women through football, it is time to go a step further and use football to promote new forms of leadership, where the players, who were initially recipients of the methodology, now become promoters of it. They will start self-managing and replicating the sports and psychosocial spaces while promoting equal educational opportunities in a community where girls barely ever have access to university studies.

 

Project goals

  • Empower leadership through the acquisition of sports and psychosocial skills and knowledge as promoters of sports for peace.
  • Increase educational and job opportunities for the players by advocating for the right to university education and promoting future economic autonomy to break the cycle of social exclusion.
  • Initiate organisational self-management processes, so that the players begin to plan, organise, and implement sports and psychosocial spaces.

 

Project content

We aim to take action that encourages recognition of the youngsters’ interests, knowledge, and desires. This process will enhance greater leadership in sports and psychosocial matters, turning them into promoters of sport for peace and agents of personal, family and community change in terms of gender equality through football, using this sport as a bridge to university studies and a dignified future job, creating a better future for themselves and their communities.

Partner

Inclusive football based education for disabled children

Location and general information

Ongoing
Location Indonesia, Jakarta
Start date 01/01/2024
End date 12/31/2024
Cost of the project €30,000
Foundation funding €20,000
Project identifier 20230282
Partners ASA Foundation
Categories Access to Sport - Children with disabilities - Environmental protection - Gender Equality - Healthy lifestyle - Personal development - Strengthening partnerships

Context

Indonesia is now one of the world’s largest plastic waste producers, producing over 3.2 million tonnes of plastic waste per year. The country also struggles with high levels of poverty, poor health and education, inadequate sanitation and nutrition, and discrimination against women, girls and those with disabilities. These nationwide issues affect both rural and urban populations, including the 30.5 million people living in the capital city of Jakarta.

Disabled children face numerous barriers to education and consequently are less likely than their peers to start and complete school. Inclusive sport can improve their well-being and self-esteem and can transform how communities view disabled people.

Football is Indonesia’s most popular sport – played by children and adults alike – and is gaining popularity among women and girls.

Project goals

  • Improve the emotional, psychological and social well-being of beneficiaries
  • Develop a cohesive society that fights exclusion and promotes upward mobility
  • Enhance inclusive education through awareness and skills training in health, life skills, gender equality and the circular economy
  • Encourage female participation (at least 50%) to promote female empowerment and equal access to opportunities, resources, decision-making and autonomy
  • Improve access to education and learning outcomes for disabled children through inclusive sports and education development activities
  • Achieve a cleaner, greener society by encouraging local government ministries and schools to adopt the programme’s circular economy and recycling management processes

Project content

15 male and 15 female teachers from schools for disabled children, mainly from particularly disadvantaged areas of the capital, will be selected to attend a two-day training of trainers workshop at a carefully selected special needs school in Jakarta. They will be introduced to a collaboratively designed football-based curriculum, available in both Bahasa Indonesia and English, covering life skills development and gender equality, health and well-being, the circular economy, and waste management development. They will also learn to lead simple activities geared towards long-term sustainability, such as how to recycle plastic materials to produce sports training equipment.

The teachers will then return to their schools to lead weekly extracurricular training sessions for disabled boys and girls. The teachers will be supported, mentored, monitored and evaluated by master trainers on a weekly basis and will attend a refresher training day after six months.

Partner

Young Coach Education Ecuador

Location and general information

Ongoing
Location Ecuador, Ibarra
Start date 11/01/2023
End date 03/24/2024
Cost of the project €198,341
Foundation funding €52,610
Project identifier 20230885
Partners Scort Foundation
Categories Access to Sport - Children with disabilities - Conflict victims - Gender Equality - Healthy lifestyle - Personal development - Strengthening partnerships

Context

Once a safe haven in South America, the situation in Ecuador has visibly worsened over the past few years, with widespread insecurity and a vast increase in violence across the country, which nonetheless continues to host numerous refugees and migrants from Colombia and Venezuela. Almost 1 million people are exposed to violence, poverty and displacement. Children’s mental and physical well-being are particularly affected, with a heightened risk of discrimination, exploitation and abuse. Inclusive and safe spaces where children can play, learn, de-stress and simply be children are essential. Football in particular has proven to be an important means of restoring social connections, promoting learning and supporting psychosocial well-being.

For this reason, the Scort Foundation and its partner the Football Club Social Alliance (FCSA) have teamed up with the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) and local organisation Fundación de las Americas para el Desarrollo (Foundation of the Americas for Development, FUDELA) to train 45 committed young adults to become grassroots football coaches and community leaders. The Young Coaches not only learn how to provide safe and structured sports activities for children in their communities, but also how to use football to promote resilience and foster inclusion.

Project goals

  • Educate 45 young adults to become role models and coaches for children in vulnerable and/or conflict-prone communities
  • Promote access to quality, fun, educational activities for over 5,000 girls and boys from refugee and host communities
  • Promote social cohesion through sport
  • Promote access to sport for girls and disabled children
  • Strengthen the network of Young Coaches (and other organisations) within Ecuador using sport for protection

Project content

The Young Coach Education project empowers committed young coaches in their roles as proactive community leaders, on and off the pitch.

During their training, the Young Coaches learn how to use football to create a safe environment for children, promoting health, inclusion, social cohesion and protection. The project combines football and educational games to improve children’s life skills as well as their physical and mental well-being. It aims to be as inclusive as possible, including disability-specific educational content. This can help break down barriers and promote the inclusion of disabled children in the regular activities run by the Young Coaches.

The training consists of three modules: two five-day face-to-face modules in Ecuador, and one online. Interactive and illustrative learning is at the heart of the programme. During the on-site modules, a strong focus is placed on practical learning, in order to make optimal use of the FCSA instructors’ expertise and provide the Young Coaches with their first tools. While the instructors initially show solutions, they increasingly demand creative problem-solving from the Young Coaches, who come up with strategies in groups. The lessons are immediately put into practice at two festivals held during each on-site module for children from the local community. Additional workshops are delivered by experts on topics such as child protection and safeguarding, first aid, and the role of sport in strengthening resilience and mental well-being.

Between the two on-site modules, the Young Coaches are expected to apply what they have learned in their communities and independently complete the additional online module. Regular live webinars provide a space for mutual support and a deeper understanding of the content.

Partner

Football, Rock and Water

Location and general information

Ongoing
Location Peru
Start date 02/01/2024
End date 12/31/2024
Cost of the project €86,648
Foundation funding €62,559
Project identifier 20231029
Partners NGO Mama Alice
Categories Access to Sport - Gender Equality - Healthy lifestyle - Infrastructure and equipment - Personal development

Context

Since 2005, the NGO Mama Alice has been working in Ayacucho, Peru, to improve the lives of children affected by underdevelopment, isolation and poverty. During Peru's internal conflict in the 1980s and 90s, Ayacucho’s rural population suffered extreme violence. Many fled their homes, settling in the city’s outskirts, where they lack basic facilities such as water, sanitation and electricity, which contributes to an increase in infectious diseases.

Unemployment has led to poverty, malnutrition, family break-up, domestic violence and child abandonment. The population remains deeply scarred by the violent conflict, and lives in a culture of fear and distrust. The indigenous population are particularly affected by poor access to healthcare, high infant mortality rates and a low life expectancy.

Facts about Ayacucho:

  • 39.4% of the population live in poverty, 7.8% in extreme poverty
  • 17.3% of children suffer from malnutrition, and 45% of children under three are anaemic
  • 13.4 % of the population is illiterate and only 24.1% have completed primary school
  • 64% of women have been victims of sexual violence, and in 33% of cases the attacker was a family member

 

Project goals

Mama Alice’s mission is to forever change Peruvian communities from the inside out, with a focus on educational and psychological support. The Football, Rock and Water project aims to motivate children to be more active and to improve their football skills, while connecting with others and improving their self-esteem, social skills, assertiveness and leadership skills.

The goal is for at least 80% of the 1,120 participating children to get fitter, gain a more positive self-image, improve their resilience and adaptability, learn to collaborate and lead, and feel valued and nurtured, and at least 70% to attend regularly and learn the rules of football. The aim is for 90% of the participating teachers to observe positive physical and psychosocial development in their pupils.

Project content

Mama Alice has been offering Rock and Water activities alongside football training, including intensive camps, to primary and secondary school children in Ayacucho since 2021.

The Rock and Water programme teaches children to face life’s challenges with a ‘rock’ (strong and resilient) and ‘water’ (flexible and adaptable) attitude.

In addition to constructing a football pitch, Mama Alice will provide two-month-long football and psychosocial training to 32 groups (35 children per group) of children aged 7 to 12. The project will conclude with the groups coming together for final activities and football matches between schools. All children receive participation certificates and a Rock and Water bracelet, and help to evaluate the activities.

Partner

Bijzondere Eredivisie

Location and general information

Ongoing
Location Netherlands
Start date 09/22/2023
End date 05/31/2028
Cost of the project €1,281,810
Foundation funding €150,810
Project identifier 20230682
Partners Stichting het Gehandicapte Kind
Categories Access to Sport - Children with disabilities - Personal development

Context

Sport is crucial to children’s physical and mental well-being, and team sports also help develop social skills through collaboration. Unfortunately, it is often a challenge for disabled children to join their local football club and participate in team sports generally.

Project goals

  • Promote social interaction and friendship through football clubs.
  • Improve disabled children's health and confidence.
  • Foster positive, inclusive perceptions of disabled children, both inside and outside the football community.
  • Increase disabled children’s participation in football during and as a result of the project.
  • Involve a minimum of 18 professional clubs within three years.

Project content

  • Bijzondere Eredivisie (Special Eredivisie) competition: every club hosts a one-day competition involving four visiting teams travelling with their official club bus.
  • Press conference: a press conference is held with journalists that make the children feel like professional
  • Clinics and training sessions: clinics and training sessions are organised with professional footballers from the participating
  • Friendly matches: friendly matches are organised against other clubs in the Bijzondere
  • Grassroots activities: activities are organised for disabled footballers through the grassroots sections of the professional

Partner