Badgers Next Gen

Location and general information

Ongoing
Location Cap Town, South Africa
Start date 01/15/2025
End date 12/15/2025
Cost of the project €27,105
Foundation funding €27,105
Project identifier 2024001424
Partners Badgers Football Academy
Categories Access to Sport - Employability - Gender Equality - Personal development

Context

A study in the UK found that 43% of girls had dropped out of sporting activities by the time they had gone through puberty; 68% indicated that it was because they felt judged and 43% said that it was because they felt unsafe.

South Africa is an extremely unsafe place for girls. It has one of the highest rates of gender-based violence in the world. On average in 2024, over 15,000 women were assaulted every three months and almost 1,000 were murdered.

South Africa also has one of the highest levels of wealth inequality in the world. The World Bank reports that 55% of the country lives in poverty. Cape Town specifically suffers from deep-rooted gangsterism and spatial and housing inequality as an ongoing result of the apartheid Group Areas Act, which forcibly removed black people from so-called white-only areas.

Public transport in South Africa is unreliable and riddled with safety issues, and an incredibly small number of sports clubs cater specifically for girls. As a result, it is virtually impossible for the majority of girls to find safe, supportive and professionally run sporting communities.

Project goals

  • Provide a safe and professional football environment for girls living all over Cape Town
  • Create pathways for girls to grow, athletically and personally, building confidence, improving physical and mental health, improving academic performance, building and strengthening friendships and creating a sense of belonging
  • Offer school scholarships to players in need of additional support
  • Provide safe transport home after dark for all who need it
  • Upskill female coaches and referees through funded courses and practical experience throughout the season
  • Build strong relationships with players’ families to ensure a strong support network for all
  • Ensure players have access to healthy food and drinks on game days

Project content

Badgers Football Academy is a Cape Town football club owned and run by women for girls and women. It breaks down the barriers that exclude girls from sport and uses football to empower young women, by giving them access to a safe and supportive, values-driven, professional football environment.

  • Professional coaching three times a week
  • Ongoing mentorship from coaches and older players
  • Sports equipment, tracksuits and kit
  • Nutritional meals on game days
  • At least 10 school scholarships per year
  • After-school tutoring and academic support
  • Regular team-building activities and an annual friendship-building camp

Partners

Empowering Zambian adolescents to conserve nature through sport

Location and general information

Ongoing
Location Basanga community, Musungwa chiefdom, Itezhi-Tezhi district, Southern Province, Zambia
Start date 03/31/2027
End date 03/31/2027
Cost of the project €125,250
Foundation funding €54,750
Project identifier 2024000945
Partners Game Rangers International
Categories Access to Sport - Children with disabilities - Employability - Environmental protection - Gender Equality - Healthy lifestyle - Personal development

Context

Over two-thirds of the estimated 12,000 people living in the remote Basanga community are under the age of 19. These children and adolescents face many challenges, including a lack of education, food insecurity and inadequate healthcare.

Basanga lies on the edge of Zambia’s largest and oldest protected area, Kafue National Park, a rich ecosystem home to 30% of the country’s total elephant population and countless large carnivore species. Desperate community members living in poverty are drawn to poaching as they face scare employment opportunities and may not see the value of natural resources. At the same time, the absence of law enforcement lowers their risk perception. Single unemployed women in Zambia are particularly vulnerable to being exploited by the illegal wildlife trade. Women are considerably less likely than men to report wildlife crime and are drawn to exchange information, sex and secure accommodation on the borders of the park for bushmeat or money. This dangerous cycle of transactional sex perpetuates the spread of HIV, gender-based violence and unwanted pregnancies.

Project goals

  • Reduce wildlife crime in and around Kafue National Park by raising awareness of conservation efforts and empowering young people through vocational training
  • Improve young people’s health, well-being, problem-solving, leadership and resilience
  • Prevent unplanned pregnancies, child marriage and sexual and spousal violence in Basanga by championing sexual health education and empowering girls

Project content

Game Rangers International (GRI) is building a multi-purpose community youth sports centre for the Basanga community. Over the next two years, with critical support from the UEFA Foundation for Children, GRI will engage, educate and empower children and adolescents at the centre, helping them to develop their skills and surrounding them with positive role models.

To this end, GRI will:

  • Recruit and train a groundsman responsible for security and maintenance
  • Recruit and train a community outreach ranger to schedule activities, develop content, coordinate partnerships and facilitate sessions
  • Furnish and equip the centre so it can serve as a classroom, exhibition space, sports centre and outreach office
  • Decorate the centre with conservation awareness posters and information
  • Encourage children and adolescents to visit through radio broadcasts, posters and school visits
  • Offer structured weekly football training and fitness sessions for children and adolescents
  • Establish a vocational skills station and invite local professionals to offer short vocational courses for young people
  • Offer children and adolescents training on environmental conservation, girls’ empowerment and life skills

Partners

Improvement of the protective environment and well-being of children at the Habbena recreation centre in N’Djamena

Location and general information

En cours
Location Chad, N'Djamena
Start date 03/01/2025
End date 02/28/2027
Cost of the project €159,592
Foundation funding €120,000
Project identifier 2024001047
Partners INTERSOS
Categories Access to Sport - Environmental protection - Gender Equality - Personal development

Context

There is a serious lack of sports infrastructure in N'Djamena, the capital of Chad. There are few existing facilities and many government-planned projects from 2008 remain incomplete or unusable. Access to sport is therefore limited, particularly for young people in working-class neighbourhoods. Despite recent progress, including the construction of a new sports complex and ongoing stadium renovations, current initiatives fail to meet the growing needs.

Project goals

Improve the lives of thousands of children in N’Djamena by expanding access to safe, inclusive sports spaces that foster physical, personal and social development, while promoting inclusion, respect and solidarity.

Project content

Development of sports infrastructure

The project will improve the sports facilities at Habbena recreation centre by installing a natural grass football field and a running track. Children and community leaders will actively plant and maintain the grass, promoting both environmental awareness and skills development. Additionally, drainage systems will be constructed to prevent flooding, ensuring year-round accessibility and reducing the health risks associated with stagnant water and waterborne diseases.

Environmental awareness and personal hygiene

Children will take part in educational sessions on hygiene and cleanliness to teach them the importance of a clean and safe environment. Waste management initiatives will be introduced, including the installation of bins, handwashing stations and toilets and a maintenance schedule for the common areas will be drawn up. Community leaders and youth club members will be trained to lead environmental awareness activities, encouraging long-term engagement. Special environmental days will be organised, with children taking part in activities that foster responsibility and sustainability.

Child protection and psychosocial support

The project will establish child-friendly spaces within the centre, offering recreational and life skills activities to support children’s well-being and social cohesion. These spaces will be run by trained members of the community and will be inclusive for people of all genders and any disabilities. A listening centre will provide psychosocial support, with skilled social workers identifying and referring cases of psychological distress. Around 150 children will receive psychosocial support through individual and group sessions. Service mapping will be conducted to ensure cases are properly referred to existing health and social services in N’Djamena.

School reintegration and gender-based violence referrals

The project encourages out-of-school children to resume their education by bringing them together with children attending school. A cohort of 60 children (60% girls) will receive support reintegrating into school over two years, with the project covering school fees and essential supplies. For those past school age, referral pathways will be established for informal education opportunities or vocational training. Additionally, children and adolescents identified as survivors of gender-based violence will be referred to specialised service providers, including the one-stop centres managed by the government and supported by several United Nations agencies and offices.

Partners

Igombe sports and community centre

Location and general information

to be started
Location Tanzania, Igombe, Mwanza
Start date 05/01/2025
End date 10/31/2025
Cost of the project €87,232
Foundation funding €62,232
Project identifier 2024001169
Partners Sports Charity Mwanza
Categories Access to Sport - Gender Equality - Healthy lifestyle - Infrastructure and equipment

Context

Access to sport in the Mwanza region of Tanzania is limited for economic, structural and social reasons. After leaving school, young people often find themselves on the streets with no recreational opportunities, vulnerable to the risk of delinquency and abuse. In particular, many children with complicated family situations have no adult role model to guide them in their choices. Meanwhile, it is generally recognised that physical and mental health problems are exacerbated by a lack of access to sport.

Project goals

  • Improve access to sport for children and young people in Mwanza
  • Reduce the risk of delinquency and abuse
  • Give young people adult role models
  • Reduce physical and mental health problems
  • Strengthen the local community

Project content

  • Construction of a sports and community centre offering one full-size and one half football pitch, one basketball court, two volleyball courts, one netball court, and storage and changing facilities
  • Training and qualifications for volunteer coaches
  • Working with local coaches to ensure that all age groups and genders have opportunities to use the pitch
  • Particular focus on school-leavers, since they often struggle with the transition to adult life

Partners

Breaking Barriers : Well-being, Sport, and Social Integration for Children in Conflict with the Law in Madagascar and Cameroon

Location and general information

Ongoing
Location Madagascar and Cameroon
Start date 12/01/2024
End date 05/31/2025
Cost of the project €300,000
Foundation funding €120,000
Project identifier 2024001074
Partners Grandir Dignement
Categories Access to Sport - Employability - Gender Equality - Healthy lifestyle - Infrastructure and equipment - Personal development

Context

Improve the living conditions, physical and mental well-being, and social and professional integration of children in conflict with the law in Madagascar and Cameroon, by supporting local actors and promoting children's rights

Project goals

  • Improve conditions for children in detention and ensure they meet the fundamental needs of children in conflict with the law
  • Promote personal development and foster social and professional integration for children in conflict with the law
  • Empower children to advocate for their rights and increase societal awareness of their rights and needs

Project content

 

To ensure children in detention experience improved living conditions and enhanced physical and mental well-being:

  • Daily nutritional support
  • Medical support and essential supplies (first-aid kits, medicines and hygiene products)
  • Ensuring access to urgent medical care, including hospitalisation, psychological support, nutritional care and detoxification services
  • Facilitating access to sport, recreation and cultural activities during detention and legal proceedings, including football, dance, circus, basketball and theatre
  • Football tournaments involving young people from other associations and/or schools
  • Rehabilitation of detention infrastructure, including sports, sanitation and kitchen facilities

To ensure children are supported in developing their skills and life plans to achieve social and professional integration:

  • Co-development of life plans with children, guided by educators
  • Financial support for school fees, vocational training and income-generating activities tailored to each child's own plans
  • Regular visits and meetings with families to support, educate and empower them in their parenting roles

To ensure children in conflict with the law become active advocates for their rights in society:

  • Awareness-raising workshops for minors in detention facilities
  • Workshops led by peer mentors, i.e. young people previously supported by Grandir Dignement
  • Artistic productions to encourage personal expression and creativity

Partners

Mutola Cup Football League for Girls ́ Rights

Location and general information

Ongoing
Location All provinces of Mozambique, except Cabo Delgado
Start date 01/20/2025
End date 12/31/2025
Cost of the project €217,879
Foundation funding €75,798
Project identifier 2024000927
Partners Futebol dá força foundation
Categories Access to Sport - Gender Equality - Healthy lifestyle - Personal development

Context

Mozambique remains one of the world's poorest countries, where traditional norms, attitudes and social structures restrict girls' rights and opportunities and prevent them from having their most basic needs met, from going to school to growing up in a safe and healthy environment. Sexual abuse and domestic violence are widespread, as is the rate of HIV among young women. Access to sex education is sorely lacking.

Project goals

With coaches acting as role models, offering weekly training sessions accompanied by health and sex education, the aim is not only to share information but to encourage interactive discussion of topics such as life skills and sexual and reproductive health and rights, to create a sense of agency among girls and promote healthy sexual practices. Girls and other members of the community will gain knowledge and learn how to put this knowledge into practice.

Project content

The football league, Mutola Cup, is part of the national school curriculum. With regular football training sessions, team talks and matches alongside workshops led by Futebol dá força's certified voluntary football coaches, it serves as an educational platform and support structure to advance girls’ education, empowerment and rights, in particular their sexual and reproductive health and rights.

The Mutola Cup helps prevent child marriage, teenage pregnancy, violence, abuse and discrimination by providing girls with a support structure within the education system that keeps them in school and raises awareness of their rights and opportunities. Anti-hate and anti-discrimination approaches are fully integrated into the evidence-based methodology and tools used.

Partners

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Educafoot

Location and general information

Ongoing
Location Benin, Parakou and Cotonou
Start date 01/01/2025
End date 12/31/2027
Cost of the project €46,986
Foundation funding €30,000
Project identifier 2024000683
Partners Association Kenskoazell Afrika
Categories Access to Sport - Gender Equality - Healthy lifestyle - Infrastructure and equipment - Personal development - Strengthening partnerships

Context

Since 2019, the Educafoot programme, in particular the educational element, has been refined following regular dialogue with the UEFA Foundation for Children to arrive at the programme currently being run in Senegal (ten schools), Ivory Coast (50 schools) and Benin (now being expanded following a trial in five schools).

Project goals

  • Help children grow into the citizens of tomorrow by nurturing skills and values such as gender equality, environmental awareness, a work ethic, self-improvement, leadership, decision-making, social coexistence, following rules, respecting opponents and the importance of mental and physical well-being
  • Ensure access to sport by equipping 15 schools each year for three years and enabling thousands of children to take part in the Educafoot programme

Project content

The Educafoot programme's approach includes organising participants into mixed teams for the various events, having girls and boys referee, appointing co-captains, screening and discussing an educational film about the environment, making a net from plastic waste, encouraging the children to help clean the school before each match, and giving them French and mathematics tests.

Partners

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Blind Solidarity

Location and general information

Ongoing
Location Mali, Bamako
Start date 01/01/2025
End date 12/31/2025
Cost of the project €59,000
Foundation funding €40,000
Project identifier 2024000675
Partners Association Libre Vue
Categories Access to Sport - Children with disabilities - Employability - Gender Equality - Healthy lifestyle - Infrastructure and equipment - Personal development

Context

The political situation in Mali is highly unstable, and relations with France are particularly tense following the European country’s military withdrawal. This instability and widespread conflict contribute to high levels of internal displacement and poverty in one of the poorest countries in the world. In 2012, Libre Vue launched the Blind Solidarity project at the Institut des Jeunes Aveugles in Bamako (a school for 250 visually impaired children living in highly precarious conditions). The association built infrastructure including a special pitch suitable for blind football and started offering regular football coaching.

Project goals

The charity’s next steps as the project continues are to:

  • resurface the artificial pitch for blind football in order to improve playing conditions and enable Blind Solidarity to rent it out and therefore become more self-sufficient
  • step up educational measures on how to keep the pitch and its surroundings clean and in good condition
  • foster the long-term growth of blind football among girls
  • use social media to communicate more effectively throughout the country using social network

Project content

  • Resurface the artificial pitch for blind football
  • Hold regular discussions with the families of girls, in particular
  • Implement routine pitch-maintenance measures
  • Train the manager of the facilities

Partners

Empowering Mchinji Youth Through Sports

Location and general information

Ongoing
Location Malawi, Mchinji district
Start date 02/01/2025
End date 07/31/2026
Cost of the project €92,347
Foundation funding €36,938
Project identifier 2024001465
Partners Our Aim Foundation
Categories Access to Sport - Employability - Gender Equality - Infrastructure and equipment - Personal development

Context

The health and community centre in Tongozala, built in April 2019, includes a playground for younger children and a volleyball pitch for older ones. Our next ambition is to construct a multipurpose sports field and provide equipment for popular local sports like football and netball, as well as traditional dances and games, making it possible to organise training sessions, form teams and leagues, and host tournaments and friendly matches.

Project goals

  • Physical activity: Increase physical activity among 40,000 participants in 18 months (100,000 over the next three years)
  • Young sports leaders: Train at least 25 young leaders in sports-related skills and mentorship (50 in three years)
  • Community sports events: Organise four community-wide sports events a year (one every quarter), involving as much of the community as possible, as players and spectators
  • Coaching for brilliant athletes: Identify and provide specialised training (mentoring and coaching) to 25 particularly promising young athletes (at least 50 over the next three years)
  • Gender-equal participation: Ensure equal participation of girls and boys

Project content

  • Renovation of the existing playground and volleyball pitch by levelling the ground, marking boundaries and installing durable goalposts and netball poles, high-quality nets, perimeter fencing, benches for players and spectators, and proper drainage to enable year-round use
  • Cost-effective procurement of equipment for football, netball and selected traditional games and dances, including goalposts, nets, balls and kit
  • Weekly training sessions led by local coaches for children and adolescents grouped by age and skill level (at least 40% girls and young women), to develop skills, fitness and teamwork
  • Four community sports events hosted during the 18-month funding period, including friendly matches, cultural dance performances and traditional competitions to encourage broad community participation, foster social interaction and provide a platform for showcasing local talent
  • Simple logs and feedback forms to track attendance at training sessions and events, collect participant feedback, evaluate the programme and make adjustments where necessary to ensure the activities align with the project goals and community needs

Partners

Environmental Youth Ball Games and Community Competitions

Location and general information

Ongoing
Location Zimbabwe, Southeast Lowveld
Start date 02/01/2025
End date 11/30/2025
Cost of the project €20,848
Foundation funding €20,000
Project identifier 2024001386
Partners African Wildlife Conservation Fund (UK)
Categories Environmental protection - Healthy lifestyle - Personal development

Context

Zimbabwe’s young people have borne the brunt of years of economic and political instability. Rural communities, in particular, are marginalised and deprived of educational and extracurricular activities. This disadvantage is compounded by conflicts between human populations and the surrounding wildlife and a lack of appreciation for the value of the ecosystem.

These challenges make young people susceptible to unsustainable, environmentally detrimental behaviour such as poaching, deforestation and over-consumption of natural resources.

Project goals

Overall goal

Engage thousands of people each year in Environmental Youth Ball Games and Community Competition Days to bring whole communities together, from children to village elders, in celebration of the environment and to share critical wildlife messages

Specific objectives

  • Engage an at-risk, young demographic in environmentalism and inspire a change of attitude towards wildlife and the conservation sector
  • Provide a rare opportunity for children and young adults to access sport and the arts
  • Share proven human-wildlife coexistence strategies with rural communities to support the management of conflict
  • Share important messaging on the sustainable use of natural resources and build rural resilience to climate challenges

We expect to engage at least 5,000 rural Zimbabweans in 10 Environmental Youth Ball Games and 10 Community Competitions over the course of 10 months, including:

  • 1,200 footballers
  • 700 netball players
  • 800 schoolchildren
  • 240 teachers/headteachers
  • >2,000 community spectators

Project content

  • Ten netball and football tournaments (Environmental Youth Ball Games)
    Each tournament lasts six to eight weeks. The four teams that make the finals (netball and football) compete in front of a large crowd on the morning of the local Community Competition Day.
  • Ten environmental challenges (Community Competitions)
    Teams from local schools compete in drama, poetry, model-making and poster-making, presenting their messages to the community about locally relevant and urgent environmental, climate or wildlife needs

Partners

Sportducation

Location and general information

Ongoing
Location Liberia, Monrovia, Logan Town
Start date 01/06/2025
End date 02/07/2026
Cost of the project €32,437
Foundation funding €29,864
Project identifier 2024000327
Partners Aletha’s Legacy
Categories Access to Sport - Employability - Infrastructure and equipment - Personal development

Context

Logan Town is an extremely poor community where over 100,000 people live in extreme poverty, and access to education is limited. Children in the community face challenges such as child labour, harsh punishments, low primary education completion rates and disparities in education.

Project goals

Aletha's Legacy aims to improve access to education and thereby increase school attendance and completion rates in Logan Town, with a view to enabling the community’s underprivileged children to learn and hope for a better future

Project content

  • Organise sports and educational sessions for children in the community
  • Provide training for local coaches to enhance their skills
  • Implement peace-building workshops and empowerment initiatives aimed at young people
  • Provide resources and equipment for sports and educational activities
  • Collaborate with schools and community organisations to promote the programme
  • Monitor and evaluate the impact of the project on school attendance and academic performance

Partners

Kick the Ball, Save our Wildlife

Location and general information

Ongoing
Location Kenya, Narok County, Lemek Wildlife Conservancy
Start date 01/01/2025
End date 12/31/2025
Cost of the project €38,214
Foundation funding €30,000
Project identifier 2024000239
Partners Water4Wildlife Maasai Mara
Categories Access to Sport - Environmental protection - Gender Equality - Healthy lifestyle - Infrastructure and equipment - Personal development

Context

Home to diverse wildlife species, the Maasai Mara ecosystem is a vital part of Kenya’s natural heritage, tourism industry and conservation efforts. It is also home to marginalised communities in which girls in particular face barriers to personal development and recreation. They are often overprotected, restricted to household chores and denied opportunities for outdoor activities like football, limiting their growth and potential.

Project goals

  • Promote gender equality and empowerment: Break down cultural barriers and challenge gender norms by creating opportunities for girls to engage in football and community activities
  • Foster wildlife conservation awareness: Educate and inspire the next generation of conservationists by connecting girls with female wildlife game rangers and teaching them about the importance of preserving the Maasai Mara ecosystem
  • Enhance life skills and education: Provide mentorship and workshops to improve girls' life skills, mental health, reproductive health awareness and leadership abilities, empowering them for personal and professional growth
  • Strengthen community support for girls' development: Build community engagement and support for girls' participation in recreational and educational activities, promoting an inclusive environment
  • Develop sustainable infrastructure for recreation and learning: Construct a football pitch and a girls' community social hall to offer a safe, inclusive and supportive environment for girls to engage in football and mentorship programmes

Project content

  • Site preparation: Site clearance and environmental surveys to prepare the area for the construction of a football pitch and a girls' community social hall
  • Infrastructure development: Construction of a mini football pitch and a girls' community social hall
  • Football activities: Provision of football kits and monthly football sessions for girls, encouraging active participation and teamwork
  • Mentorship: Mentorship sessions with female wildlife game rangers invited to talk about their careers and inspire girls to pursue opportunities in conservation and leadership
  • Educational workshops: Monthly workshops focusing on life skills, mental health, reproductive health, gender-based violence, sexually transmitted diseases and leadership
  • Community engagement: Work with the local community to support girls’ participation in football and education, promoting acceptance and encouragement
  • Project launch: A launch event featuring a football session and a conservation talk to introduce the project and engage stakeholders
  • Project monitoring: Tracking of participation rates, participant feedback and community responses to ensure the activities are effective and aligned with the objectives

Partners

Diepsloot Safe-Hub Empower Play programme

Location and general information

Ongoing
Location South-Africa, Johannesburg
Start date 02/12/2024
End date 12/31/2024
Cost of the project €97,024
Foundation funding €74,970
Project identifier 20231018
Partners Amandla KuLutsha
Categories Access to Sport - Employability - Gender Equality - Healthy lifestyle - Personal development

Context

Diepsloot, situated in the northern part of Johannesburg, South Africa, is a densely populated area facing various socio-economic challenges: high levels of unemployment, limited educational opportunities and insufficient resources for youth development. Additionally, widespread drug abuse has emerged as a critical concern, significantly impacting the well-being and prospects particularly of the younger residents.

Project goals

  • Establish an environment within the EduFootball programme, in which participants feel secure and supported, encouraging open dialogues and creating a non-judgmental space for sharing concerns and experiences
  • Cultivate positive relationships between coaches, mentors and participants by providing role models and support structures
  • Educate participants about the dangers of drug abuse through regular workshops and expert-led sessions
  • Address the unemployment crisis by running the Playmakers programme, offering accredited learnerships and practical work experience

Project content

The Empower Play programme is designed to address the specific challenges faced by the Diepsloot community:

  • Safe and supportive environment: The project aims to create a safe and supportive space within EduFootball, providing participants with a refuge from daily challenges. Open dialogues and a non-judgmental atmosphere foster trust and encourage participants to share their concerns.
  • Positive role models: The project seeks to counter the lack of positive role models in Diepsloot by showcasing success stories and organising motivational sessions. Inspirational figures from similar backgrounds demonstrate the transformative power of education and sport.
  • Substance abuse education: The drug awareness component directly addresses the substance abuse epidemic in Diepsloot. Workshops and expert-led sessions provide participants with vital knowledge about the dangers of drug abuse, and offer resources for those seeking assistance.
  • Employability enhancement: In response to the high unemployment rates, the EduFootball programme goes beyond sport by incorporating the Playmakers programme. This initiative provides accredited skills programmes and practical work experience, empowering unemployed post-high school youth with skills to enhance their employability.
  • Monitoring and evaluation: The project acknowledges the need for ongoing assessment to track participants' progress in various aspects, such as emotional well-being, education and employability. Continuous feedback ensures that the programme responds to the evolving needs of the Diepsloot community.

In essence, the Empower Play Programme is not only a response to the immediate challenges faced by Diepsloot, but also a proactive effort to empower the community's youth, break the cycle of unemployment and substance abuse, and pave the way for a brighter and more sustainable future.

The programme includes:

  • Life-skills training session
  • Fair play football match days
  • Holiday programmes
  • Night league tournaments
  • Playmakers workplace skills training

Partner

Fun Football in Nigeria

Location and general information

Ongoing
Location Anambra, Kaduna, Benue and Kano (Nigeria)
Start date 01/01/2024
End date 03/31/2025
Cost of the project €200,000
Foundation funding €100,000
Project identifier 20230056
Partners Cross Cultures Project Association
Categories Access to Sport - Conflict victims - Employability - Gender Equality - Healthy lifestyle - Personal development - Strengthening partnerships

Context

Nigeria has a population of nearly 224 million, of which 63% are 24 years old or younger. Since gaining independence in 1960, Nigeria has faced almost constant conflict between the two major religions, between different ethnic groups and between pastoralists and farmers. This fighting has resulted in millions of deaths and unquantifiable social and material damage. In 2023, approximately 9.3 million people required emergency humanitarian assistance and nearly 3 million remained internally displaced. Women and children are particularly vulnerable: UNICEF estimates that six out of ten children in Nigeria experience some form of violence daily and nearly 20 million do not attend school, which puts them at an increased risk of violence, crime, child labour, poverty and recruitment by militias. In the northern regions, only 44% of girls receive primary education, and 48% marry before the age of 15. Moreover, unemployment among Nigerians aged 15–24 reached almost 53.4% in 2021. Nigeria is also highly susceptible to climate-change-related disasters such as floods and droughts, which exacerbate the humanitarian crises, conflict and poverty.

Project goals

Overall objective:

To promote peaceful coexistence, youth empowerment and child protection in Nigeria.

Specific goals:

  • To empower unemployed individuals with the skills and networks to promote peaceful coexistence, cooperation and social cohesion through Fun Football activities, while also enhancing their own resilience and opportunities to earn a living in grassroots sport or physical education.
  • To enhance child protection in conflict-sensitive areas with a focus on the most vulnerable, notably unschooled and internally displaced children.
  • To incorporate Fun Football into the curricula of primary schools in vulnerable communities as a means of promoting children's wellbeing and development and reducing the number of drop-outs.

Project content

Fun Football unites people across social divisions by helping them to find common ground around their passion for football and their hopes for their children's development and future. It also fosters children's social and psychological development by providing them with safe spaces to play, positive role models, new friendships, life skills and psychosocial support. Sport has been shown to play an effective role in keeping children in school since it promotes their social skills, mental well-being and self-confidence, all of which contribute to increased motivation and performance. Cross Cultures' Fun Football programme consists of three main activities:

  • Training for young leaders and coaches

Cross Cultures trains unemployed former footballers and women who are not in employment, education or training in action learning methods and the child-centred Fun Football philosophy so that they can take control of their lives and become more involved in their communities as volunteer leaders and coaches.

  • Open Fun Football Schools, Fun Festivals and other Fun Football activities

Children are given the opportunity to experience Fun Football with children from different backgrounds in a safe and peaceful environment characterised by friendship, non-violence, child protection and gender equality. The activities are led by the volunteer coaches and leaders.

  • Cross-sectoral cooperation:

The project works with 20 primary schools committed to introducing the concept of Fun Football. Cross Cultures aims to train 80 physical education teachers and coaches who will, in turn, train 5,000 participating students.

Partner

Sport in the Village

Location and general information

Ongoing
Location Zimbabwe, Harare
Start date 02/19/2024
End date 12/31/2024
Cost of the project €160,000
Foundation funding €110,000
Project identifier 20230180
Partners Fondation Khuon
Categories Access to Sport - Children with disabilities - Healthy lifestyle - Infrastructure and equipment - Personal development

Context

For more than 20 years, St Marcellin Children’s Village in Harare has been home to 66 children aged between three months and 18 years old. The orphanage also houses a preschool and a primary school for boys and girls living in the surrounding area. The 16 classes can accommodate up to 300 pupils in total. However, the only place to play sport is an undeveloped patch of dirt. Proper sports facilities are crucial to the children’s development.

Project goals

  • To give all children access to sport at school
  • For each of the 300 pupils to attend two to three supervised sports sessions each week
  • To make the sports facilities available for children from the orphanage and the surrounding area to use outside school hours
  • To offer a space where members of the community can relax and interact

Project content

The team will build a fully equipped 30m x 15m multi-sport pitch and will develop the outside space into a grass sports field measuring 70m x 50m.

These facilities will be built in a sustainable way and will be accessible to disabled children. They will be managed and maintained jointly by the two schools.

Partner

Diangsport (Education through sport in Wolof)

Location and general information

Ongoing
Location Senegal, Mbour and Saly
Start date 12/06/2023
End date 12/31/2024
Cost of the project €31,000
Foundation funding €21,000
Project identifier 20230494
Partners Association Kenskoazell Afrika (AKA)
Categories Access to Sport - Environmental protection - Gender Equality - Healthy lifestyle - Infrastructure and equipment - Personal development - Strengthening partnerships

Context

At the inauguration of the Lycée Demba Diop (multi-sports field and multi-purpose hall in 2022), three head teachers came to ask us to help their schools as they were lacking sports facilities.

After visiting the schools in June last year, we decided to adapt the Educafoot programme used in primary schools to the needs of these high schools, offering sports and educational events along with an environmental and health-based approach, including menstrual education for the girls.

Project goals

Help the children to develop and become tomorrow’s adult citizens. To fulfil this goal, our programme covers several topics, such as gender equality, access to sport, environmental education, sporting values, a work ethic, self-improvement, social coexistence, adhering to rules, respect for opponents and health education. The aim is to enhance the children’s mental and physical well-being.

Project content

We use a toolbox comprising multiple approaches to achieve our objectives. For example, we have mixed teams in the various events, and both girls and boys are given the chance to referee in order to develop leadership and decision-making skills. We educate the children about environmental issues by showing them a film and discussing it, followed by an activity making a net out of plastic waste, and have them help clean the school before each game. We organise French and maths competitions. We set up joint captainship and address health issues, in particular menstruation for the girls.

Partner