Fun Football in Nigeria

Location and general information

Closed
Location Nigeria
Start date 01/01/2025
End date 12/31/2025
Cost of the project €200,000
Foundation funding €100,000
Project identifier 2024000573
Partners Cross Cultures Project Association
Categories Access to Sport - Conflict victims - Employability - Personal development

Context

Nigeria is simultaneously Africa’s most populous country and one of the youngest, with 63% of its 224 million people aged 24 or younger. Despite being the largest economy on the continent, Nigeria faces extreme economic inequality – 40% of the population live in absolute poverty and 53% experience multidimensional poverty.

Since gaining independence in 1960, Nigeria has also faced persistent interreligious and ethnic conflicts, particularly between its two major religious groups, Muslims and Christians. The conflicts have led to millions of deaths throughout the years and caused significant social, economic and infrastructural damage. Nigeria is currently plagued by violence, particularly in the northeast, where Boko Haram and other extremist terrorist groups have been active since the early 2000s.

According to UNICEF, six in ten children in Nigeria experience violence in their daily lives and around 20 million do not go to school. The situation is particular dire for girls, who are more likely than boys to miss out on education, especially in the northern regions, where only 44% of girls receive a primary education and 48% marry before the age of 15. Out-of-school children are particularly vulnerable to violence, crime, child labour and recruitment by militia, making them less likely to break the cycle of poverty and conflict.

Young adults are another vulnerable group in Nigeria – nearly 40% of 25 to 34-year-olds are unemployed, while unemployment among 15 to 24-year-olds reached a soaring 53.4% in 2021. The resultant uncertainty and discouragement have damaging effects on individuals, communities, economies and society at large. Unemployed and underemployed young adults are less able to contribute to national development, have fewer opportunities to exercise their rights and often have limited capacity to bring about change in their lives and communities.

Project goals

Overall objective

Promote peaceful coexistence, improve the well-being of vulnerable children and empower young adults in Nigeria

Specific goals

  • Offer safe and child-friendly spaces to engage 4,000 children aged 6 to 14 in monthly youth-led sports and cultural activities that foster cooperation and positive relationships across societal divides
  • Promote peace, trust and cohesion among divided communities in target areas
  • Empower 100 young leaders and coaches who are not in education, employment or training, and provide them with networks, training, tools and hands-on experience to enable them to become active community participants and role models
  • Set up volunteer associations to enhance the soft skills and abilities of these young leaders

Project content

Fun Football

The Fun Football project involves community-based and child-centred activities that foster communication and cooperation between adversarial groups, increasing trust and promoting positive relations. The project brings people together in safe and inclusive social environments through play and common interests – namely children’s well-being. Trained volunteer youth leaders and coaches organise Fun Football activities and festivals, which comply with the following fundamental principles:

  • Games must be fun and non-competitive; children play in mixed teams with, never against, each other.
  • The activities must bring children, coaches, football clubs and communities together across societal divides.
  • The activities must promote an inclusive environment and ethnic and social diversity. At least 30% of the children participating must be disabled, refugees, orphans or vulnerable children not normally involved in organised sport.
  • The activities must promote girls' football; 40–60% of participants should be girls and women.
  • The activities must be organised by trained volunteer coaches.

Youth Leadership Education

There are two levels to the Youth Leadership Education project: basic and advanced. The basic level took place in 2024 and consisted of a three-day interregional seminar, five days of practical sessions with children and individual feedback from experienced instructors. Participants were trained as volunteer coaches, enabling them to organise Fun Football events for children and engage different communities across social divides. This allowed the young leaders to enhance their communication, organisational and problem-solving skills, while expanding their social networks.

The second level will provide advanced training to volunteer leaders and coaches, with a focus on local sustainability. To ensure that this project continues to run in the medium to long-term, young coaches will be encouraged to integrate these activities into existing football clubs or set up their own grassroots clubs. They will learn how to start, manage and develop democratic volunteer associations in collaboration with regional football associations. Running Fun Football activities alongside local associations will not only enhance sustainability and promote local ownership, it will also provide the coaches with a platform to develop and implement their own sports-based community initiatives, strengthening their sense of agency and entrepreneurial skills and broadening their networks.

Partners

Youth Transformation

Location and general information

Closed
Location Kenya
Start date 02/01/2025
End date 12/31/2025
Cost of the project €126,000
Foundation funding €100,000
Project identifier 2024001568
Partners Mathare Youth Sport Association
Categories Access to Sport - Employability - Gender Equality - Healthy lifestyle - Personal development - Strengthening partnerships

Context

Young people in the Mathare district of Nairobi face a myriad of challenges ranging from unemployment and poverty to social exclusion and violence.

Crime and violence are commonplace in the slum communities of Kenya, and children and young people are highly vulnerable to such acts. According to various studies, young people are both frequent victims and perpetrators of crime.

This highlights the urgent need for initiatives that harness the power of sport to address the multifaceted challenges facing young people today.

Project goals

  • Empower young people by developing their essential life skills and leadership qualities and providing opportunities for personal growth and social inclusion
  • Foster social cohesion and harmony by bringing together diverse communities through shared sports experiences and collaborative initiatives
  • Integrate sports and education to enhance learning outcomes, promote healthy lifestyles and advocate for gender equity while equipping young people with the knowledge and skills they need to be successful
  • Raise public awareness of the negative effects of risky behaviours and work with the community to combat such behaviours
  • Educate communities about harmful stereotypes and promote respect for diversity

Project content

Mathare Youth Sports Association encourages sport as an alternative to risky and anti-social behaviour, offering sufficient structure, discipline and incentive to steer children and young people away from drugs, violence and crime. It runs boys' and girls' football leagues in a safe, inclusive environment and with an emphasis on life skills and values. These leagues serve as an intervention tool to address problems facing the community.

The project's activities include:

  • Football for all league
  • Sports training programmes
  • Life skills workshops
  • Mentorship programmes
  • Community engagement initiatives
  • School outreach campaigns
  • Coach education sessions
  • Gender initiative campaigns
  • Monitoring and evaluation

Partners

Sports development programme

Location and general information

Closed
Location South Africa
Start date 01/01/2025
End date 12/31/2025
Cost of the project €166,000
Foundation funding €30,000
Project identifier 2024001091
Partners Grootbos Foundation
Categories Access to Sport - Children with disabilities - Employability - Environmental protection - Gender Equality - Healthy lifestyle - Personal development

Context

Gansbaai, like other semi-rural areas in South Africa, struggles with youth unemployment, resulting in limited opportunities and a pervasive lack of hope among young people.

The situation is compounded by a number of challenges typical of disadvantaged communities: elevated school drop-out rates, poor public transport, gender-based violence, alcoholism, drug use, high levels of depression and other socio-economic pressures.

Project goals

  • Offer an engaging, fun sports programme during and after school to ensure that children and teenagers have a safe place to go, accompanied by trained adult coaches (target: 3,000 children)
  • Teach mental health and coping skills, menstrual health, gender-based violence awareness, HIV/AIDS awareness, wildlife conservation and nutritional health to support the local schools’ educational programmes, giving children hope and encouraging them to persevere with formal education
  • Deliver inclusive programmes to people of all ethnicities, ages, genders and abilities to ensure no one is left behind
  • Ensure awareness of nature and encourage conservation efforts
  • Help young people pursue careers and achieve financial stability to reduce dependence on state aid

Project content

  • In-school programme: physical education projects in 10 schools, and assistance with subject choice and career planning for teenagers
  • After-school multi-sport coaching: football, netball, hockey, girls' rugby, cross-country running, athletics, water safety, surfing, canoeing, gross motor skills for early childhood, adapted games for young people with special needs
  • Four holiday programmes a year
  • Tournaments and competitions
  • Mental health projects using surf therapy
  • Ocean and land conservation programmes
  • Awareness projects that use football to address gender-based violence and HIV/AIDS
  • Menstrual health/sanitary pad project
  • Rising stars project offering elite sporting opportunities
  • Training modules for coaching staff

Partners

Construction of an artificial football pitch

Location and general information

Closed
Location Madagascar
Start date 02/01/2025
End date 12/31/2025
Cost of the project €406,043
Foundation funding €120,000
Project identifier 2024000804
Partners AKAMASOA
Categories Access to Sport - Children with disabilities - Gender Equality - Healthy lifestyle - Infrastructure and equipment

Context

Madagascar is one of the ten poorest countries in the world. Since 1989, Father Pedro Opeka and his humanitarian organisation, AKAMASOA, have been fighting the extreme poverty that plagues the country on a daily basis by providing emergency aid to those in greatest need, building houses, educating children, providing healthcare, helping people find employment and providing vocational training for young people.

In 1989, AKAMASOA helped 140 families from the capital, Antananarivo, settle 60km away in Antolojanahary, where the organisation built houses, a dispensary, schools and sports facilities. The village now has a population of 6’000.

Project goals

  • Build an artificial football pitch on the existing dirt pitch for the village’s 2,190 schoolchildren as well as other youngsters from the village and surrounding areas, giving every child the chance to play football, have fun, escape their difficult living conditions and the difficulties their country endures, and develop a sense of community
  • Enable children to play football not only in their school sports lessons but also, under supervision, during their free time and at weekends
  • Stage matches between local teams of children and young adults, bringing together residents of surrounding villages and developing a sense of community

Project content

  • Construction of an artificial football pitch for use by:
    • one nursery, one primary school, one secondary school and one college;
    • 2,190 children from primary to high school age (figures from the 2024/25 academic year).
  • Daily sports activities and competitions, including matches every weekend.
  • The pitch will be monitored at all times to ensure the facilities are being properly looked after.

Partners

Girls Community League: Life Skills Plus

Location and general information

Ongoing
Location Philippines
Start date 02/01/2025
End date 01/31/2026
Cost of the project €127,150
Foundation funding €33,700
Project identifier 2024001198
Partners FundLife International Inc.
Categories Access to Sport - Employability - Gender Equality - Personal development

Context

Nearly 5 million children in the Philippines drop out of school every year, most as a result of poverty, which affects almost 48% of the population in Leyte province. The COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated matters: public schools closed for over 700 days, leaving many students without access to learning resources or support. In 2021, Typhoon Rai further disrupted education by displacing families and destroying schools. As a result, vulnerable young people face significant barriers to completing their education, girls especially. Without targeted support and remedial programmes, many risk being trapped in a cycle of generational poverty and limited opportunities.

Project goals

  • Provide a safe space for girls to play futsal, guided by inspiring female role models. Key: nurturing environment, consistency, regularity
  • Educate girls about how to navigate common challenges such as teenage pregnancies, reproductive health, mental health and online safety. Key: empowerment, mental and emotional well-being
  • Provide practical, hands-on training and guidance to help girls identify opportunities and make informed career choices. Key: employability, confidence

Project content

  • Football for development sessions: Fun training sessions for girls Mthat also teach about environmental protection, water, sanitation and hygiene
  • Champion sessions: Interactive discussions with young mentors who inspire girls with stories of accomplished athletes and others
  • Mentorship: Engaging with the girls to develop their critical thinking, creativity and confidence
  • Capacity-building: Training and workshops for local teachers and youth leaders so that they too can deliver sustainable education and support programmes for girls
  • Local league games: Weekly futsal matches that enable girls to develop their technical skills, build networks with peers and practise overcoming psychological and emotional challenges
  • ‘Life skills plus’ sessions: Training in technology, digital skills, business and getting a job

Partners

Génération Sportive

Location and general information

Closed
Location Morocco, Tunisia and Libya
Start date 01/02/2025
End date 12/31/2025
Cost of the project €260,247
Foundation funding €150,000
Project identifier 2024000931
Partners Tibu Morocco
Categories Access to Sport - Gender Equality - Healthy lifestyle - Personal development - Strengthening partnerships

Context

For children in Morocco, Tunisia and Libya, access to physical education is limited, the school dropout rate is high and the economic situation is far from easy. Moreover, in Libya and Tunisia, their lives are made even harder by war and instability.

Lack of access to sport and physical education is detrimental to children’s physical and mental health, and it limits their personal development. This can lead to young people taking risks, including illegal migration.

Project goals

  • Improve children’s physical and mental health by integrating sport and physical exercise into the school syllabus of 20 primary schools, encouraging 12,000 children to exercise regularly
  • Create jobs for young adults to foster their social and economic inclusion
  • Promote gender equality
  • Reduce the school dropout rate by creating a more stimulating and inclusive school environment
  • Offer an alternative to illegal migration by creating jobs for local people and opportunities for economic inclusion

Project content

  • Supervised sports sessions in primary schools featuring activities designed to improve children’s motor skills, coordination and self-esteem
  • Health and well-being workshops teaching young people about nutrition, hygiene and healthy lifestyles
  • Promoting gender equality through the equal participation of boys and girls
  • Training and employing 20 young adults as sports activity leaders
  • Annual national tours delivering sports and educational activities in schools across each country, including in rural areas, with the participation of 9,200 children as well as their parents and teachers
  • Engaging parents, teachers and the local community to ensure the programme’s sustainability

Partners

Young Women’s Economic Empowerment at Malaika

Location and general information

Ongoing
Location Democratic Republic of Congo
Start date 02/01/2025
End date 01/31/2026
Cost of the project €239,285
Foundation funding €60,000
Project identifier 2024001267
Partners Georges Malaika Foundation
Categories Employability - Gender Equality - Personal development

Context

Girls and young women living in rural areas of the Democratic Republic of Congo face a number of obstacles when trying to enter the world of work. Even those lucky enough to have finished school or completed some level of education struggle to find a job. They are restricted in their choice of career and access to resources, a situation exacerbated by cultural norms and gender stereotypes.

Many are forced into low-paying and often exploitative jobs that offer little job security,minimal benefits and limited prospects for upward mobility, trapping women in a cycle of poverty and vulnerability and putting them at risk of dependency or abuse.

Entrepreneurship is a potential pathway to economic empowerment, but a lack of funding, support, training and role models makes it difficult for girls to get started, overcome barriers and make careers for themselves.

Project goals

  • Educate and empower: All girls and women who participate in the project are taught about entrepreneurship and financial literacy and equipping with the necessary skills and opportunities to explore diverse career paths and launch their own small businesses.
  • Enhance business skills: 80% of girls and women interested in beginning their own business ventures say they are equipped with the confidence and knowledge to do so.
  • Create strong networks: The organisation has built diverse, long-term, stable and productive relationships with five companies that will offer internships for female programme participants.
  • Launch a seed fund: Programme participants are given the skills needed to launch small businesses in their community.
  • Ensure equitable access: The Malaika community centre has given more than 1,500 young women and girls access to vocational and professional training, equipping them with the necessary skills to find decent and dignified employment.

Project content

Malaika is an African-led grassroots non-profit, created in 2007, that empowers communities through education, skills and health programmes. It has impacted the lives of thousands of children and their families in rural Kalebuka and surrounding communities in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The organisation is also committed to investing in girls’ education and lifting communities out of poverty through livelihood, water, sanitation and hygiene and agricultural initiatives.

The Young Women’s Economic Empowerment project educates girls aged 13 and older on entrepreneurship and leadership in the Malaika school and community centre. Launched in 2024, this project takes a holistic approach to empowering young women by combining education, real-world experience and financial support to unlock their potential as entrepreneurs and changemakers in their communities.

Participants engage in a comprehensive educational programme that includes workshops, simulations, mentorship opportunities and career development courses. Through partnerships with local businesses, participants gain access to internships and job-shadowing opportunities, fostering real-world experience and professional connections.

A highlight of the initiative is the annual pitch competition, where participants present business ideas to a jury of educators and entrepreneurs. Winners receive seed funding to bring their ideas to life and are supported through ongoing mentorship to establish and grow their ventures. This activity is a critical stepping stone for young women, particularly those who may not pursue higher education, empowering them to build sustainable businesses that address community needs.

A sustainability plan is being developed to ensure that entrepreneurship education continues beyond the project’s duration, with an eye toward rolling out the programme in more communities.

Partners

Badgers Next Gen

Location and general information

Closed
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

Terminé
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

Closed
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), Côte d’Ivoire (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

Closed
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