CategoriesAccess to Sport - Children with disabilities - Conflict victims - Gender Equality - Personal development
Context
Syria is still one of the worst humanitarian crises in human history, with 6.1 million internally displaced people, including 2.5 million children.
Many families have started to return to their homes and are trying to get back to a ‘normal’ life. However, organised sports activities are still rarely accessible to children.
Project content
The Open Fun Football School initiative has proved to be an excellent tool to mobilise local communities and volunteer coaches in some of the most politically uncertain and conflict-sensitive areas across the world.
CCPA will use the Open Fun Football School (OFFS) initiative as a tool to enhance peace education, safeguarding and resilience among children and teenagers throughout Syria.
Objectives
The overall objective of Open Fun Football Schools in Syria is to enhance resilience and encourage a culture of peace and non-violence, gender equality, child protection, an appreciation of cultural and social diversity and of culture’s overall contribution to sustainable development.
Mobilise a network of young Syrian leaders and coaches and build their capacity to independently organise Open Fun Football Schools and other community-based fun football activities
Organising Open Fun Football Schools and other fun football activities for children aged 6-12
Anchoring the network in sustainable and community-based clubs that organise day-to-day Open Fun Football School activities throughout Syria
Project activities
Open Fun Football Schools will focus on following areas : Damascus, Aleppo, Homs, Hamah, Latakia, Tartus
Introduction to the CCPA child-centred and community-based approach for eight Open Fun Football School leaders/trainers-of-trainers who will receive training in theory and practice.
60 hours of Open Fun Football School coaching seminars for 96 coaches to teach them the approach. The seminars will be led by the eight leaders/trainers-of-trainers under the supervision of the CCPA and its associated partners from CCPA Lebanon, CCPA Jordan and CCPA Iraq.
30 hours of seminars run by the eight leaders for 96 young coaching assistants aged 14–18 to teach them the approach.
Eight six-day Open Fun Football Schools organised by the leaders in cooperation with the trained coaches and coaching assistants for 1,600 children aged 6–12.
One-day fun football festivals organised by the leaders in cooperation with the trained coaches and coaching assistants for a total of 1,600 children (show-ups) aged 6–12.
Three-day seminar for 60 Open Fun Football School leaders and coaches so they can set up football clubs.
Regular fun football training sessions organised by the Open Fun Football School leaders in cooperation with the trained coaches and coaching assistants for a total of 1,000 children.
Expected results
8 Open Fun Football School leaders /trainers-of-trainers
96 Open Fun Football School coaches
96 coaching assistants aged 14–18
gender balance: minimum 30% females
social balance: minimum 50% refugees/internally displaced persons/socially disadvantaged individuals
3 capacity-building seminars
3,200 children aged 6-12 years in 8 Open Fun Football Schools and Festivals
Smiles for Children – Disability and the COVID-19 health crisis
Location and general information
Terminé
LocationSwitzerland, Rolle
Start date
01/01/2021
End date
12/31/2023
Cost of the project€150,000
Foundation funding€50,000
Project identifier20200121
PartnersJust for Smiles
CategoriesAccess to Sport - Children with disabilities
Context
There are over 150,000 children with disabilities in Switzerland. The COVID-19 pandemic has isolated them at home. To help them reintegrate and readjust, Just for Smiles plans to expand its sailing programme to reach more beneficiaries.
Project content
Children are enrolled in a sailing activity to suit their preferences, abilities and needs in terms of motor skills and sensation. They spend a half day laughing and feeling the thrill of being on the lake. This adapted sports activity is particularly useful in the treatment of neurological conditions such as spinal injury, head injury and stroke.
Objectives
The aim of the project is to give children with disabilities the greatest possible access to sailing and wellbeing. Just for Smiles seeks to have a lasting impact on the participants and their independence.
Project activities
The sailing trips take place in the warmer months, consisting of two two-hour trips per day.
Expected results
2,400 children will go on a sailing trip from Rolle harbour.
CategoriesAccess to Sport - Children with disabilities - Infrastructure and equipment - Personal development
Context
Fundación Empate is an Argentinean NGO that provides free, non-profit spaces and activities for people with Down syndrome to promote their holistic development and social growth. Since 2016, the foundation has offered activities such as football, tennis, music, art and job training workshops.
The activities promote encounters between people with and without different types of disability. The aim is to foster inclusion in all social, cultural and sports contexts, with an emphasis on psychomotor and cognitive development. In this continuous learning environment, people with Down syndrome develop in terms of sports, culture and play, helping them to improve their quality of life and find their place in society. The goal is for them to learn about themselves to better understand the world around them.
Project content
Across Argentina there is a shortage of places where people with Down syndrome can learn to play sports, have fun and develop. Empate for Argentina seeks to fill this gap by offering quality inclusive sports spaces with fewer barriers. To help achieve this, Fundación Empate is developing a scheme of free social franchises to share its experience, methodology, guidelines and success with other locations.
Objectives
Improve the health of the participants
Develop learning skills through sports practice
Promote personal and social recognition through sports activities as a framework for social inclusion
Encourage socialisation so participants can establish new bonds and create friendships
Promote self-esteem, individual growth, self-control, courtesy, social skills, respect and cooperation with others
Encourage recreational and sports meetings with other schools and institutions
Generate exchanges with society to facilitate the active participation of all those who wish to collaborate
Project activities
Developing a franchise model in three Argentinian provinces (Buenos Aires, Tucumán and Mendoza)
Developing training programmes to share the knowledge and experience gained by Fundación Empate over the last four years
Identifying three institutions to become franchises
Supporting and mentoring the franchises in the first few years of development
Gathering experiences to provide feedback and improve the methodology so that the franchise can be expanded to more provinces in the future
Expected results
Reach 500 people with Down syndrome (110 in Cordoba and 100 per province)
Develop free quality sport spaces for people with Down Syndrome
Promote the values of Fundación Empate in the three social franchises: respect, empathy, equality and equity, commitment and confidence
Develop tools to facilitate the integration of people with Down syndrome into different social environments, such as school, local community, family and work
CategoriesAccess to Sport - Children with disabilities
Context
In Russia, there are still many obstacles to the integration of people with Down syndrome into the community. Sport assists social integration since it develops physical and mental abilities, improves emotional and psychological well-being, and teaches teamworking and social skills. However, there are still insufficient clubs, coaches, methods and conditions to enable children with Down syndrome in Russia to engage in sports, including football.
The Football for Children with Down Syndrome project began in 2015, when the charitable foundations Syndrome of Love and Downside Up started to teach football to children and teenagers with Down syndrome in Moscow. Through active promotion of the methodology, the project has spread to 12 other major Russian cities. More than 1,300 sessions took place between 2015 and 2019, with over 200 children with Down syndrome benefiting from regular football lessons.
The project has proven its value and effectiveness for children with Down syndrome. Regular physical activity is vital as a means of physical, mental and social development.
Project content
Football for Children with Down Syndrome is the first initiative in Russia that teaches children with Down syndrome how to play as a team. They attend football training sessions several times a week, participate in friendly games and other sports events, and attend football matches.
The project plans to organise:
professional development courses at the Russian State Social University (RSSU) to train 15 coaches how to organise mini-football lessons for children with Down syndrome;
training camps for children with Down syndrome from Moscow and other regions;
an intensive training course in better competition preparation, sports form, and football skills;
a mini-football competition at the end of the project (in autumn 2021).
Objectives
Stimulate the physical development of children with Down syndrome and improve their communication and social skills through regular football playing
Popularise sports, physical activity and football among children and teenagers with Down syndrome and their families
Draw attention to sports for children with Down syndrome among parents and the professional community
Create a friendly and tolerant environment for people with Down syndrome that supports equal rights and opportunities
Project activities
Conducting regular football classes for children with Down syndrome
Organising training camps and refresher courses for coaches from Moscow
Conducting advanced training courses at RSSU for 15 trainers
Holding training camps for paritcipants from Moscow and other regions for a total of 150 people (children with Down syndrome, coaches, volunteers and organisers)
Holding mini-football competitions for children with Down syndrome
Expected results
Physical development in children and young people with Down syndrome
Broader range of communication skills to compensate for difficulties with speech
Active leisure time
Improved socialisation skills and independence
Raised awareness at government level of the need for sports development for children with Down syndrome
Increased tolerance towards people with Down syndrome and other disorders in Russian society
LocationGreece and more than 170 countries across five continents
Start date
01/01/2021
End date
01/01/2021
Cost of the project€100,000
Foundation funding€95,000
Project identifier20200573
PartnersYouthorama
CategoriesAccess to Sport - Children with disabilities - Personal development
Context
There is a challenge globally to include pupils with visual impairment in physical education (PE) in general primary schools. There is generally only one type of PE class for all pupils and there are limited inclusive sports tools. As a result, pupils with visual impairment do not participate in PE at the same level as their sighted classmates. This project meets this global need and provides a sustainable solution. It supports children’s right to education and their right to play as well as Sustainable Development Goals 4 (quality education) and 10 (reduced inequality).
Project content
Youthorama’s founder invented an innovative lightweight sound ball. The unique mini ball for all children is not for sale – it is only donated. In Greece, an educational programme using the mini ball was approved by the ministry of education for all schools – both general and special – and all grades. This project aims to establish a network of schools across the world that will promote inclusive sports through this new educational package.
Sierra Leon India
Objectives
Produce and donate up to 2,000 mini blind footballs for children
Create a more inclusive society through the use of these balls as a non-formal learning tool
Educate mainstream nursery and primary schools, NGOs and public structures on inclusive sport
Create a manual of up to 40 good practices
Launch an Adopt a Ball pilot initiative for schools to raise awareness of sports for all
Establish an Inclusive Football Network across the world (currently spanning 172 countries)
Project activities
Donation of the innovative mini blind footballs – the only ones available on a global level and not for sale – to children in need and their schools across 5 continents
Designing an inclusive educational package
Delivering up to 200 sports workshops in general and special nursery and primary schools to promote personal development, empathy and inclusion
Evaluation of the project’s success in achieving its aims
Launching the Adopt a Ball campaign and promoting open four-a-side events
Expected results
100 schools in disadvantaged areas across the network delivering the educational programme
25,000 sighted and visually impaired pupils in mixed classes
500 schools registered in the Adopt a Ball network
2,500 questionnaires
500 PE teachers and volunteers using the accessible e-learning platform
3,000 participants in the open four-a-side events
2,000 mini blind footballs donated
1 social message documentary for TV
Our vision is for the ball to be heard in every visually impaired child’s home and school around the world!
CategoriesAccess to Sport - Children with disabilities - Personal development
Context
Football is often used to promote sexual and reproductive health in low- and middle-income countries. In fact, the Liverpool Football Club Foundation (LFC Foundation) and the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine (LSTM) are in the second year of their 2.5-year Health Goals Malawi project. The project’s initial goal was to reduce the incidence of HIV and other sexually transmitted infections (STI) among teenage boys and young men in Malawi.
They have decided to run a similar project in disadvantaged areas of Liverpool because the city has the second-highest rate of new STI diagnoses in northwest England. Rates of early pregnancy are also higher than the national average. There is a strong correlation between early pregnancy and socio‑economic deprivation. Teenage pregnancy can be both a cause and a consequence of health and education inequalities. High-quality relationship and sex education is therefore crucial to address such inequalities.
The main drivers of these inequalities are:
Persistent school absence before year 9 (pupils aged 13 and 14)
Relatively slow academic progress
Poverty
Football is used for three reasons:
The strength of the Liverpool FC brand in the city engages these socially vulnerable children aged 11 to 16.
As football is the most popular sport in Liverpool, participants will be highly motivated to attend in order to develop their skills.
Football drills and games can lead to discussions about key topics.
Project content
The project will focus on:
relationship and sex education programmes in schools and colleges, with targeted prevention for at-risk youngsters of both sexes
training on relationships and sexual health for health and non-health professionals, e.g. sports coaches
using the influence of community sports coaches and the LFC Foundation brand to engage young people, emphasising the importance of positive male and female role models
developing an innovative method of delivering relationship and sex education, with a particular emphasis on overcoming health and educational inequalities by reaching out to the most at-risk young people
Objectives
A clear and comprehensive curriculum will be developed with coaching materials and resources. If this project is successful, the curriculum will be integrated into the day-to-day work of the LFC Foundation with schools throughout Liverpool.
If this approach proves to be effective, the teen pregnancy rate could be reduced.
Project activities
Six weeks of football training and coaching provided in different schools
Football tournaments
Project evaluation with the children and coaches involved
Annual survey of participants
Expected results
Some 300 children aged 11 to 16 years, 50% of whom are to be girls, are to take part in project activities. The participants will include children with disabilities and poor mental health.
PartnersAssociation Football Development Programme (AFDP) Global
CategoriesAccess to Sport - Children with disabilities - Conflict victims - Personal development
Context
AFDP Global and the UEFA Foundation for Children are helping people displaced by the conflict in Syria, particularly children and young people living in Zaatari refugee camp.
The UEFA foundation and its partner AFDP Global provide weekly sporting activities for displaced Syrian boys and girls, ensuring a fun and safe environment for training and competitive activities. These activities are not limited to football, but also include judo, Zumba and table tennis. The project will continue to support the Syrian coaching and management team established in the camp to provide football activities for children and young people. Sport is used to raise awareness of social issues and impart the life skills necessary in the context. Continuous training for skills development will also be provided. Proper supervision of the children taking part in the programme will be ensured, with appropriate role models. This will ensure the continuity of the project.
Objectives
Engaging Syrian children and young people
To provide football and other sports activities in an appropriate, safe and supervised environment, allowing children to enjoy their childhood. In addition to playing and spending time together, the youngsters will learn football skills and the fundamental values of sport such as respect, fair play, team spirit and solidarity. They will also receive education on specific social issues.
Training Syrian football coaches and referees
To provide training for Syrian refugees on how to run football coaching sessions, equipping them with the skills required to manage a league and run football clubs, with specific classes on refereeing.
Integrating a life skills curriculum
To teach coaches how to best use the values of sport to facilitate children’s personal development and raise their awareness of certain social issues, with a particular focus on conflict resolution, early marriage, birth control and the importance of schooling, health, hygiene and well-being.
Maintaining established football clubs and league
To support administrators and coaches, ensuring that they have the capacity to maintain the football clubs and league established by the project in previous years.
Project activities
Infrastructure and training material
The UEFA foundation, in cooperation with AFDP Global, has contributed to the construction of a sports centre. Known as the House of Sport, it is a place for social activities and a safe environment where children and young people can have fun and make friends, especially those who are interested in football.
Since the beginning of the project, 20,000 footballs, 20,000 T-shirts, caps and backpacks, 5,000 pairs of shoes and 1,000 training kits (cones, plates, bibs, stopwatches, whistles, etc.) have been distributed for sports activities.
At each tournament, 1,000 snacks and 2,000 bottles of water are distributed.
The coaches have also been fully equipped.
The two main pitches used for tournaments have been upgraded to artificial turf and are fully equipped for football matches.
Eleven containers of various material (sportswear, balls, etc.) have been provided by the UEFA foundation.
Football pitch
Pursuing the aim of providing a safe environment for the beneficiaries of the project, the UEFA foundation, in cooperation with AFDP Global and the Jordanian Football Association, contributed to the conversion to artificial turf of a full-size football pitch (in 2017) and a small pitch for girls (in 2018), with the financial support of LAY’S.
Four containers were sent from the Netherlands with artificial turf, construction material (including geotextiles, adhesive, tape, a tractor and other maintenance equipment), and pitch equipment such as goals and corner flags.
Figures (August 2021)
Some 279 adult refugees – including 94 women and 185 men – have already benefitted from the coaching education offered by the foundation, equipping them with the necessary skills to become good coaches and therefore to supervise and organise sporting and football activities such as weekly training and tournaments. Twenty-seven of these coaches are currently working for the project and the others for other non-governmental organisations in the camp.
Experts appointed by the UEFA foundation and AFDP Global have run workshops on refereeing, trauma recovery, sport as a tool for social cohesion, early marriage and conflict resolution. Some 54 referees have been trained, of whom 21 are women.
Around 5,110 children and young people – boys and girls – regularly take part in the weekly sports activities and monthly football tournaments supervised by qualified male and female educators. This peaked at 7,137 young Syrians in October 2019 – 4,947 boys and 2,190 girls aged between 8 and 20.
Numbers were expected to increase in summer 2020 but the COVID-19 pandemic forced AFDP Global to suspend activities, for safety reasons and as a result of government-enforced lockdowns from March 2020 to August 2021.
Monthly football tournaments are organised in the camp for the age groups under-13, under-15 and under-20. An average of 1,000 children and young people aged 8 to 20, including 300 girls, take part in the monthly tournaments. The highest number of participants was 1,580 in March 2019.
Monthly events are organised for under-8s, with an average of 100 children participating.
Men’s teams can use the field for two hours per day.
Apart from football, other sports and activities are organised. Some 340 boys regularly do judo (age groups under-13 and under-15), over 180 boys and girls participate in table tennis activities (age groups under-13 and under-15), and 300 girls take Zumba classes.
Expected results
Coaching and football activities to be organised for a total of 2,800 boys and 1,800 girls between the ages of 8 and 20.
Monthly football tournaments to be organised in the camp, with an average of 1,000 participants aged 8 to 20, including 300 girls.
More than 18 men’s teams to be provided with the facilities to play football daily and tournaments to be organised for them.
Other daily sports and activities to be organised, offering a greater diversity of activities to the beneficiaries, including judo, table tennis and Zumba.
A team of 13 male and 13 female staff to be maintained. They will use sport, and football in particular, as a tool for social cohesion and conflict resolution, and will be responsible for managing teams for the different age groups.
External events to be organised, boosting social impact through awareness and increased friendship-building opportunities.
Camp facilities to switch to solar power during 2021, with a back-up generator for the project offices.
PartnersNational Paralympic Committee of Kazakhstan
CategoriesChildren with disabilities
Context
According to statistics from Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Labour and Social Protection, the number of people with disabilities has increased by 20.7% over the past 7 years. Approximately 4% of these 680,000 people have a visual impairment. Visual impairment has a negative effect on children’s physical development, including height, body weight, lung capacity and chest volume. Most visually impaired children have poor posture, curvature of the spine, and flat feet, as well as reduced motor abilities, strength, speed, endurance, coordination, and static and dynamic balance. In addition, complete or partial loss of vision leads to psychological pathologies in some cases. Limited contact with others can lead to isolation, lack of communication and introversion, making it difficult to form business and personal relationships with the outside world.
Project content
The Paralympic Committee plans to provide a football pitch for people with disabilities to offer all citizens equal development opportunities and advance societal development.
Objectives
The aim of the project is to run blind football training sessions to allow visually impaired children to:
develop their physical strength;
improve their motor abilities and posture;
combat their isolation and limit psychological pathologies.
Project activities
Building of the football pitch
Provision of blind football sessions
Hiring of coaches from football teams
Further improvement of the pitch in the future
Expected results
Football facilities with easy access for people with disabilities
Specific training for football coaches to support people with disabilities
Football sessions for visually impaired children
Enhanced mobility and social integration of people with disabilities in society
CategoriesAccess to Sport - Children with disabilities - Personal development
Context
Talibé is the name given to children living on the streets of Senegal. They are on the streets for various reasons: many are orphans, from poor families or marginalised because of a disability. Left to take care of themselves, their main objectives are often simply to find enough to eat and a roof to sleep under. In this desperate situation, the children of Saint-Louis find refuge in violence or drugs, using substances such as glue in plastic bags.
Life is also tough for children living at home with their family. With financial resources scarce, one out of every two children do not attend school but carry out household chores or painstaking work in the fields from a very young age.
Project content
In 2008, Unis Vers le Sport, in cooperation with UNESCO, opened its first school in Mali, which enabled more than 160 children from disadvantaged families to benefit from school education, sports activities, medical care and vocational training. Unis Vers le Sport would like to open a similar school in Saint-Louis, where the French organisation has been running various education and sports-based projects since 2002.
The UVS International education centre will have:
dormitories for boarders
a dining hall and kitchen for the children’s meals
three classrooms
an administrative building
a barn for animals and a fenced plot of land
a toilet block
an indoor sports court (basketball, volleyball, handball)
a football pitch
The sports activities available at the UVS International centre will also be used to promote prevention campaigns relating to local health issues (malaria, typhus, etc.) and to raise public awareness concerning various topics such as children’s rights.
Objectives
The centre has a two-fold objective. In cooperation with the Saint-Louis social services, it will accommodate and take full responsibility for the street children of Saint-Louis by offering them:
board and lodging
a full school curriculum
medical care
vocation training from age 16
daily sports activities
micro-credit when they leave the centre in order to start their own business
access to suitable regular sports activities for children from neighbouring villages that do not have any sports facilities or equipment of their own
the centre will be totally self-financed by agricultural activities (farming and market gardening)
Expected results
Initially, to take in and look after 100 Saint-Louis street children
To offer sports activities to 5,000 pupils of schools within a 20km radius of the UVS centre. A school bus service will enable the children concerned to enjoy a variety of suitable sports activities run by experienced sports coaches.
LocationCook Islands, Fiji, French Polynesia, New Caledonia, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Vanuatu, India, New Zealand, American Samoa, Samoa
Start date
01/01/2020
End date
04/30/2020
Cost of the project€ 600,000
Foundation funding€ 200,000
Project identifier2019615
PartnersOceania Football Confederation
CategoriesAccess to Sport - Children with disabilities - Personal development
Context
Football is popular, accessible, and profound in its ability to connect people and places. Seen as an incredibly powerful platform, through which to facilitate the promotion of social change, football and sport for development programmes are recognised as a low-cost, high impact tool to supporting the achievement of global development priorities.
The Oceania Football Confederation (OFC) focuses on sport for development as part of its overall strategy to build stronger, healthier communities and address social issues affecting young people in the Pacific region.
The purpose of the Just Play programme is to reduce vulnerabilities to endemic social issues, such as the prevalence of non-communicable diseases (NCD), gender inequality and social exclusion, by integrating social messages into sessions – for example, the importance of eating fruit and vegetables. The programme promotes the importance of regular physical activity and its impact on issues such as nutrition, disability and social inclusion, to enable positive social behaviour change.
Home to half a million children spread over 17.2 million square kilometres of ocean, children in the Pacific region face several significant challenges as they navigate their way through daily life.
Health and wellness – non-communicable diseases the leading cause of death
With obesity and diabetes on the rise, research indicates that only 18% of children in Fiji, Samoa, the Solomon Islands, Tonga and Vanuatu attend regular physical education classes, with fewer than 20% of children in these countries playing for 60 minutes or more a day. More than 50% of children choose soft drinks instead of water, which contributes to weight gain. More than 25% of children present as overweight and obese as early as 13 years of age.
Gender equality and social inclusion – prevalence of discrimination and inequality
Children with disabilities experience discrimination, exclusion and social barriers, and girls are marginalised and face inequalities in education, decision-making processes and access to health services.
Child safeguarding – high levels of bullying and violence
Evidence shows that poverty, hunger and lack of access to services remain major challenges for children in the target countries. One in four children live below the poverty line and children are exposed to high levels of violence at home and at school. More than 45% of children aged 13–15 report being bullied; 27% have attempted suicide in the past 12 months; 12% report having no close friends; and 80% of children experience some form of direct violence or abuse.
Protection risk factors are high. More than 40% of children reportedly miss school and 35% of children report that their parents or guardians do not know what their offspring are doing or where they are during their free time.
With low levels of literacy and up to 30% of young people aged 15–24 years presenting as illiterate, employment opportunities are limited, resulting in high unemployment rates among young people in the region.
Emergency preparedness and response – high risk of natural disasters
Between 2009 and 2017, the Pacific region was affected by 44 natural disasters. Vanuatu and Fiji were hit by category 5 tropical cyclones in 2015 and 2016 that affected nearly one million people, including 450,000 children. Fiji, the Solomon Islands, Tonga and Vanuatu accounted for 30 of 44 natural disasters that struck the region, with children constituting on average between one third and one half of the people most severely affected.
With a focus on the UN’s sustainable development goals (SDGs), adopted in 2015, the OFC’s sport for development activities were developed to help support and reinforce national capacities to deliver results for children and children’s rights throughout the Pacific region.
Through the provision of structured sport for development interventions, the OFC seeks to reduce risk factors associated with NCDs, child protection, gender and social inequality. These efforts were extended to humanitarian response with the success of the Just Play emergency programme.
Working with key delivery partners such as the Australian government, Football Federation Australia, the New Zealand government, UEFA Foundation for Children and UNICEF Pacific, the OFC seeks to build confidence in children and teenagers and provide access to quality sports activities, educational platforms, advocacy campaigns and public dialogue through active participation.
Project content
With a ball, a coach and a safe space to play, the Just Play programme delivers football in combination with life skills messages aimed to build stronger, healthier individuals, communities and nations by addressing social issues affecting children and teenagers in the Pacific and beyond.
Through the OFC’s Just Play programme children and adolescents are empowered to advocate for change, supporting the development of positive behaviour and the enhancement of resilience among their peers and community.
Objectives
Recognising that football for development programmes are designed to champion a learning through sport approach, the Just Play programme provides an ideal platform through which to enhance positive behaviour, develop fundamental life skills and promote action-oriented learning.
Whether it is a training session, fun activity, kick-about or competition, football provides a setting within which children and teenagers are forced to make hundreds of important decisions—where the consequences matter. With no two football drills, kick-abouts or matches ever the same, it provides children and young people with a variety of scenarios and contexts to learn from.
Project activities
Through engagement in the OFC’s four social responsibility programming streams: Just Play 6-12 year programme, Just Play 13-18 year programme, Just Play grassroots and the Just Play emergency programme, the programme helps to:
Reach children and teenagers who are most at risk, providing access to information on health and wellness; gender equality; social inclusion; child protection and safeguarding; clean water, sanitation and hygiene; emergency preparedness; and life skills;
Provide knowledge and skills, promoting positive behaviours and informed decision-making among children and teenagers;
Mobilise children and teenagers through advocacy campaigns at local, national and regional levels alongside major sporting events;
Leverage partner support to ensure a synergistic and coherent response among sports for development projects and programmes;
Create role models to promote and encourage positive behaviours and active, responsible civic engagement of children and teenagers;
Engage children and teenagers in internalising the link between football and healthy lifestyle choices;
Empower and engage girls, increasing opportunities and access to football, in addition to providing concrete links to management and leadership pathways within football;
Work with inter-governmental and non-governmental organisations that have direct and frequent contact with children, teenagers and communities, and who can create a supportive and structured environment for running football for development programmes;
Develop new partnerships to expand and enhance the delivery of football for development programmes – creating a blueprint to share and promote best practices.
Just Play in numbers
Just Play is supporting the upskilling of teachers and community volunteers to enable them to deliver programme activities that facilitate capacity building, ownership and accountability in social change through a community based, child-centred approach.
317,004: The number of children and teenagers who have taken part in the Just Play programme across the Pacific region since 2009
7,198: The number of teachers and community volunteers trained to deliver of the Just Play programme in the Pacific region since 2009
17,390: Number of children and teenagers who have taken part in Just Play emergency programme festivals in the wake of a natural disaster in the Pacific region
Results
The Oceania Football Confederation (OFC) recognises that children who have a positive experience of sport early on are more likely to practise sport and physical activity throughout their lives.
The OFC also acknowledges that sport helps children and teenagers to develop life skills applicable both on and off the field of play.
Health and wellness
Before participating in Just Play: 52% of children chose to drink water instead of soda
After participating in Just Play programme: 82%
Gender equality
Before participating in Just Play 53% of boys reported that they enjoyed playing football with girls
After participating in Just Play programme : 72%
Social inclusion
Before participating in Just Play : 65% of children reported that they acknowledged and celebrated differenced
After participating in Just Play programme : 85%
Child protection
Before participating in Just Play : 24% of children reported that they felt safe in the wake of a natural disaster
After participating in Just Play programme : 59%
Just Play has a positive impact on children and teenagers through a sport-based curriculum that enables them to develop the life skills necessary to make consistent, long-term healthy lifestyle choices that promote health and wellness, gender equality, social inclusion and child protection, including in post- emergency contexts.
65% of teenagers report they now know how to set goals; 54% know how to make the goals SMART
98% of teenage boys in the Just Play programme see their coach as a positive role model
44% of coaches in the Just Play 13–18 year programme are women
71% of teenagers report they have someone they can talk to when they have a problem or need help
93% of teenagers report they now know what to do in a situation where they or someone they know is being bulled
CategoriesAccess to Sport - Children with disabilities - Personal development
Context
Cambodia is one of the countries most affected by landmines anywhere in the world. An estimated 4 to 6 million landmines and cluster bombs and other unexploded ordnance were left behind after nearly three decades of war ending in 1998. Children, particularly those in rural areas, are in particular danger because they are most likely to be unaware of the risks of playing in or traversing hazardous areas.
In Cambodia, children account for up to 50% of landmine casualties, according to the Cambodian Red Cross. Children are far more likely to die from landmine injuries than adults, with an estimated 85% of child victims dying before reaching the hospital.
Landmines also cause gut-wrenching injuries: children may lose their sight or hearing; lose fingers, toes and limbs; or suffer injuries to their genitals. They also suffer psychologically from the trauma of a landmine injury. Without adequate medical treatment, children injured by landmines are often pulled out of school. They face limited future prospects for education and employment and are often perceived as a burden to their families.
Clearing mined areas is expensive, time consuming and complicated when climate, displacement and economic necessity drive people into contaminated areas. The most efficient way to tackle the problem is to make sure children are educated about the types of weapons present in their community and how to avoid them. However, there is a lack of effective mine risk education in Cambodia meaning children lack the knowledge needed to stay safe.
Project content
Spirit of Soccer's mission is to use football to educate children living in conflict and post-conflict regions about the dangers of landmines, unexploded ordnance (UXO) and other explosive remnants of war. It educates, trains and employs local football coaches and teachers. They are taught how to deliver its curriculum, which uses easy-to-understand football-related lessons to teach children how to identify and avoid specific threats posed by explosive remnants of war in their communities. The approach is culturally sensitive and adapted to local cultural, religious and social needs. The focus is on a fun, safe environment that is inclusive to all and provides healthy physical activity, hope and happiness.
Through its work, Spirit of Soccer addresses Sustainable Development Goal 16: Peace Justice and Strong Institutions, with a specific focus on Target 16.1: Significantly reduce all forms of violence and related death rates everywhere.
Objectives
The project aims to deliver mine risk education to approximately 12,000 Cambodian children through football/MRE clinics and MRE tournaments and a further 24,000 Cambodian children through a multimedia campaign involving the distribution of posters and school notebooks. Spirit of Soccer will provide all services and materials, including:
an MRE curriculum to be delivered by (locally trained and recruited) Spirit of Soccer coaches to 12,000 at-risk Cambodian children, with the assistance of the Cambodian Mine Action Centre (CMAC) and the Cambodian Mine Action and Victim Assistance Authority (CMAA);
distribution of 500 footballs featuring mine education messages;
training of 20 teachers – through a coaching/MRE course and workshop based on the Spirit of Soccer’s football/MRE curriculum – who will promote MRE messages in their local communities;
distribution of 10,000 school notebooks featuring world-renowned football stars endorsing safe behaviours for schoolchildren to follow should they encounter mines or explosive remnants of war.
Project activities
Coaches and teachers trained to be mine risk educators
Mine risk education delivered directly to children in at-risk communities through educational football clinics
Regular mine risk education festivals to expand the indirect reach to the wider community
Expected results
The project aims to achieve a 75% or higher favourable response to certain key indicators about mine safety knowledge as tracked by its M&E system to demonstrate the effectiveness of the football programme as a vehicle for mine risk education.
CategoriesChildren with disabilities - Conflict victims - Personal development
Context
In 2016, 6,447 unaccompanied refugee children, mostly from Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria, applied for asylum in Bulgaria. With the adoption of a new law on foreigners that came into force in 2017, the temporary detention of children, including unaccompanied and separated children, was legalised, contrary to international human rights standards. Children applying for asylum were moved to refugee centres, where they lived in the same space as adults and faced a huge risk of violence and abuse.
In 2017, World at Play was invited by Caritas Bulgaria, part of the Caritas international aid organisation, to work on a programme to support and integrate refugee children and young people in the Harmanli and Sofia areas.
During a preliminary fact-finding project, it quickly became evident that there were tensions between the refugees and local communities. The local population itself faced difficulties related to low incomes and a lack of opportunities and felt excluded and marginalised due to an increased focus on refugees.
World at Play started to build relationships between young locals and young refugees. Initially working with them in separate groups, it then started integrating them into each other’s games and showed how, through the power of sport and play, individuals can engage with one another with respect and care as equals, regardless of gender, ethnicity and background.
Project content
World at Play believes that access to sport, and the freedom to play without fear, prejudice or intimidation, is an integral part of every childhood.
World at Play has been running specially designed sport and play programmes since 2004. Its games – often requiring little or no equipment – rely on specially selected coaches and trainers who have been extensively trained to:
work with children and young people who have experienced trauma and conflict;
work with marginalised children and ostracised communities;
work with children who have suffered abuse and physical or emotional violence
work with disabled children and young people.
World at Play primarily uses common, well-known games and sports such as football, hockey, frisbee, cricket and baseball, but it has a handbook of nearly 150 games that enable children to be active and have fun while also learning about teamwork, cooperation, inclusion, support, gender equality and communication.
Caritas Bulgaria is directly involved in World at Play activities as a local partner of the Harmanli refugee centre and the Voenna Rampa and Ovcha Kupel refugee centres in Sofia. Their staff and volunteers are trained to deliver World at Play programmes.
Objectives
To improve the lives of vulnerable children in society, e.g. socially underprivileged children, Roma communities, disabled children and unaccompanied refugee children
To promote gender equality in communities where females are often treated unfairly
To use games to promote teamwork
To strengthen academic knowledge, particularly language skills, through play
To encourage participation of young refugee victims of trauma, using sport and cricket as a starting point to engage with them, lift them out of depression and find common ground to work from
To use music therapy in rehabilitation centres to improve the self-confidence of disabled children
Project activities
Sport and play sessions for refugees from a diverse range of backgrounds
Inclusive play sessions that emphasise gender equality
Skill development sessions for community leaders within the refugee camp
Donation of equipment to ensure sessions are sustainable
Expected results
Individual engagement and respect will be fostered between the different communities, regardless of gender and heritage.
Physical activities will benefit health and well-being.
Partner organisation staff will develop their sports coaching skills and be empowered to deliver future sessions in order to make the project sustainable.
Individuals who have faced barriers to participation in the past will be welcome at sessions as equals, in line with long-established World at Play principles.
Over 100 male and 35 female participants will attend World at Play sessions.
CategoriesAccess to Sport - Children with disabilities - Personal development
Context
The Child and Parent Day is an annual event for families with children 5–12 years old with brain injuries, including their parents and siblings. When it comes to regular education and sport, these children often fall behind. On the outside, most of these children look like any other; however, their brain injuries cause delays in learning and social-emotional development. This leads to exclusion, bullying and isolation. Many of these children have no suitable school or education programme. And they simply have no friends. Ultimately, they don’t go to school or sports club at all and many of them just stay at home with their parents. Which has a huge impact on their development and their day-to-day family life.
Project content
The purpose of the Child and Parent Day is to help these children make a connection, to encourage social interaction among children with the same background and help them make friends through sport. In addition, it encourages knowledge sharing and recognition for the parents. They can take part in workshops and lectures about education, rehabilitation, family support, legislation and regulations.
Objectives
Improve self-confidence, self-reliance and social contacts
Project activities
The Child and Parent Day comprises a variety of sports activities, adapted to the limitations of the children. The games are supervised by expert sports coaches. There are some traditional sports such as football, basketball and hockey, but also boxing lessons, climbing walls and a cycle cross track. In addition, there are all kinds of cognitive games and challenges to stimulate their brains.
Expected results
Tailor-made education, rehabilitation and leisure activities for children with brain damage.
CategoriesAccess to Sport - Children with disabilities - Personal development
Context
There is huge concern about the abandonment of children in Russia, most of whom are children with disabilities. More than half of people with Down’s syndrome in Russia grow up in orphanages and nearly 30% of Russian children with any type of disability live in orphanages.
The village of Belskoye Ustye is 20km from the nearest town and orphanage residents are restricted in their interactions almost exclusively to their peer group and carers. The region including the surrounding villages and the nearby town of Porkhov is economically depressed, suffers from large outward migration and has few opportunities for young people.
During the summer of 2018, the huge positive impact of football on the children was discovered after some training sessions with professional coaches were organised, enabling tthe joy of playing football together. It was then decided to create a football programme that will provide a rare source of recreation to both children from the orphanage and children from the local community, giving them an opportunity to socialise and to learn important skills.
Project content
The football project of the Step Up Orphan Opportunity Centre, funded by the UEFA Foundation for Children, aims to include orphans and disabled children in society, outside the orphanage. The project will help the children from the orphanage to go some way towards overcoming their severe isolation, facilitating their integration with locals and helping them to develop key communication skills. Moreover, the project will seek to involve children growing up in the village of Belskoye Ustye, the surrounding villages and the nearby town of Porkhov.
To achieve that aim, a football field will be built, and a methodology for football workshops for children with disabilities will be created so that volunteer coaches can run the activities.
Objectives
To give children from the orphanage and the rural community access to sport education (guided by professional coaches and trainers).
For children from the orphanage to socialise with children from the surrounding rural areas.
To improve the health and psychological conditions of the children from the region.
For teachers from the orphanage to gain skills as football coaches.
For teachers from the orphanage to improve their ability to support the personal development of the children and to integrate specific skills into the football training sessions.
To develop a specific methodology for football workshops for children with disabilities.
To build a football pitch.
Expected results
Football pitch built.
Football training sessions provided for the teachers at the orphanage.
Football activities provided for the children of the orphanage.
Football events run for the children from the orphanage and the children from the local community.
Sport for Development is a critical component of the Oceania Football Confederation’s approach to helping to build stronger Pacific Island communities.
With obesity and diabetes on the rise, research indicates that only 29% of children in the Cook Islands, Fiji, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga and Vanuatu attend regular physical education classes,[1] with less than 25% of children in these countries practising 60 minutes or more of sport a day.[2] More than 50% of children choose soft drinks instead of water, which is a major contributor to weight gain. More than 27% of children are overweight and obese as early as age 13.[3]
Children with disabilities experience discrimination, exclusion and barriers to being widely accepted, while all girls are marginalized and face inequalities in education, decision-making processes and access to health services.
Evidence shows that poverty, hunger and lack of access to services remain major challenges for children in the targeted countries. One in four children live below the poverty line[4]. Children in general are exposed to high levels of violence at home and at school, and more than 50% of children aged 13–15 years report being bullied[5], 26% have attempted suicide[6], 12% report having no close friends[7], and 80% of children experience some form of direct violence or abuse[8].
With low levels of literacy and up to 30% of young people aged 15–24 actually illiterate, employment opportunities are limited, resulting in high unemployment rates among young people in the Pacific region.[9]
Between 2009 and 2017, the Pacific region was affected by 44 natural disasters. Vanuatu and Fiji were hit by category 5 tropical cyclones in 2015 and 2016 that affected nearly 1 million people, including 450,000 children. Fiji, the Solomon Islands, Tonga and Vanuatu suffered 30 of the 44 natural disasters that struck the region,[10] with children on average constituting between a third and a half of those most severely affected.[11]
Through the provision of structured Sport for Development interventions, UNICEF Pacific seeks to reduce the risks associated with non-communicable diseases, child protection, gender and social inequality. These efforts were extended to humanitarian response with the success of the Just Play emergency programme.
Working with key partners such as the OFC, UNICEF Pacific seeks to build confidence in children and young people and create access to quality sports activities, educational platforms, advocacy campaigns and public dialogue through active participation.
[1] World Health Organization, Global School-Health Based Survey Country Fact Sheets for Cook Islands (2015), Fiji (2016), Samoa (2011), Solomon Islands (2011), Tonga (2017) and Vanuatu (2011).
[2] Secretariat of the Pacific Community and UNICEF Pacific, The State of Pacific Youth: Opportunities and obstacles, Bluebird Printery, Fiji, 2011.
[3] World Health Organization, Global School-Health Based Survey Country Fact Sheets for Cook Islands (2011), Fiji (2010), Samoa (2011), Solomon Islands (2011), Tonga (2010) and Vanuatu (2011).
[5] World Health Organization, Global School-Health Based Survey Country Fact Sheets for Cook Islands (2011), Fiji (2010), Nauru (2011), Niue (2010), Samoa (2011), Solomon Islands (2011), Tonga (2010), Tuvalu (2013) and Vanuatu (2011).
[6] Secretariat of the Pacific Community and UNICEF Pacific, The State of Pacific Youth: Opportunities and obstacles, Bluebird Printery, Fiji, 2011.
[7] World Health Organization, Global School-Health Based Survey Country Fact Sheets for Cook Islands (2011), Fiji (2010), Samoa (2011), Solomon Islands (2011), Tonga (2010) and Vanuatu (2011).
[11] UNICEF, ‘Child-Centred Risk Assessment: Regional Synthesis of UNICEF Assessments in Asia’, UNICEF, Nepal, 2014.
Project Content
Just Play is a community-engagement Sport for Development programme developed by the OFC to improve the lives of children and teenagers aged 6–16 by means of football.
The programme engages children in a series of interactive sessions that include social messages aligned to the four key programming pillars: health and wellness, gender equality, social inclusion and child protection. Through active participation, Just Play helps children to develop healthy lifestyle habits and become confident in their abilities; encourages gender equality; promotes social inclusion; and emphasises that sport is for everyone.
The programme aims to reduce the risks associated with, and vulnerability to, endemic social issues, such as the prevalence of violence against women and children, gender inequality and social exclusion, by integrating social messages into the sessions – for example, the importance of reporting bullying and other types of violence. In doing so, the programme promotes an understanding of the importance of regular participation in physical exercise and its impact on issues such as bullying, violence and social inclusion to enable positive social and behaviour change.
Just Play also facilitates the development of critical life skills applicable both on and off the field of play, including the acceptance of rules, teamwork, respect, decision-making and fair play.
The 16-week school-based programme is delivered in primary schools during class time with the support of teachers, while the 48-week community-based programme is delivered outside school with the support of community stakeholders.
The Just Play emergency programme is now a full-scale emergency response programme that uses football to communicate critical messages about safe water, personal safety and preparedness.
Just Play supports programming activities by working with local stakeholders in areas most likely to be affected by natural disasters.
By focusing on vulnerability, the programme leverages existing content to support coping in the wake of a natural disaster, and specifically the emotional recovery of children within an emergency context.
Objectives
Just Play is run with the support of trained coaches and equipment packs containing footballs, cones, bibs, activity manuals and other resources that enable children to learn healthy lifestyle habits and social skills that focus on:
Health and wellness, by reducing the risk factors associated with non-communicable diseases (NCDs) through healthier lifestyle decisions and choices;
Gender equality, by changing perceptions towards women and girls, and creating pathways to empower women and girls to realize their human rights;
Social inclusion, by changing perceptions towards those disadvantaged on the basis of their identity or ability, and creating equal opportunity for their full inclusion in society;
Child protection, by increasing understanding of child protection issues, and the availability of safe/protective environments, including in sports contexts, through tailored advocacy campaigns, e.g. #ENDViolence and REDcard;
Education, by facilitating the development of important life skills applicable both on and off the field of play, including the acceptance of rules, decision-making, teamwork, overcoming adversity, showing respect, and expressive play;
Water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH), by supporting the development of positive WASH behaviours and practices in schools and communities, and in times of emergencies;
Emergency, by building reliance and supporting the emotional recovery of children and adolescents in the wake of natural disasters and conflict.
Just Play supports the upskilling of teachers and community volunteers to deliver programme activities that facilitate capacity-building, ownership and accountability in social change through a community based, child-centred approach.
284,929: The number of children and adolescents who have taken part in the Just Play programme throughout the Pacific region since 2009;
5,102: The number of teachers and community volunteers trained to help deliver the Just Play programme in the Pacific region since 2009;
17,083: Number of children and teenagers who have taken part in Just Play emergency programme festivals in the wake of a natural disaster in the Pacific region.
Image: OFC - Just Play
Expected Results
Just Play is positively impacting children and teenagers through a sport-based curriculum that helps them to develop the life skills necessary to make consistent, long-term healthy lifestyle choices that promote health and wellness, gender equality, social inclusion and child protection, even in post-emergency contexts.
After the programme:
81% of children choose to drink water instead of soda
72% of boys report they enjoy playing football with girls
85% of children report they acknowledge and celebrate differences
59% of children report they feel safe following a natural disaster
CategoriesAccess to Sport - Children with disabilities - Personal development
Context
The UEFA Foundation for Children’ support will help develop the sporting dimension of the project, which aims to combat the gender stereotype, that women are inferior to men, in Malawi. As a consequence, girls and young women feel vulnerable and are often the target of sexual and gender-based violence.
Project content
The Centre for Alternatives for Victimised Women and Children (CAVWOC) organises sports activities, such as football and karate, to bring vulnerable girls and boys together in a setting of greater equality.
The goal is for the children to learn mutual respect, develop self-esteem and start a process of resilience. Combining sports training with information on sexual and reproductive health rights will help girls and boys protect themselves.
If the girls play football with boys, the masculinity related to the game will disappear. This will give an enormous boost to their self-esteem and will be one step towards breaking the gender stereotype. Sport will help the girls to work in a team and develop their objective-setting skills. Working with coaches, trainers, and teammates to win games and meet objectives is great practice for success later in life. Sport will also make them better able to accept defeat and emerge stronger from it. Being a team player will make it easier for them to work with others and resolve issues, whether on the field or in their personal lives.
CAVWOC will set up 12 girls’ football teams and organise a football tournament, inviting successful national female players to take part. This experience will boost the girls’ feeling of empowerment.
CAVWOC has run a pilot programme to teach the girls karate, and it has increased their self-esteem and confidence and even the boys are more understanding and treat the girls equally. In addition, the karate training helps them to defend themselves.
In addition to the sports activities, boys and girls will take part in the information campaign about sexual and reproductive rights. We aim to reduce the inequalities and power imbalance between boys and girls. We believe that men and boys are not only part of the problem in gender imbalance, but also part of the solution. This is one way to increase solidarity with girls. Male champions can influence their peers about how boys and men can support girls.
Beneficiaries:
1,000 vulnerable children aged between 16 and 18 living in rural areas
More than 76% are girls
Around 5% are disabled children
5% are orphans
25% live in difficult social contexts
Objectives
The overall objective is to reduce the number of women and children that encounter rights violations in Malawi. The project provides infrastructure and support to enable communities to acknowledge and value the laws that protect and allow all women and children to live healthy lives and sustain themselves financially.
A society in which women and children feel safe and protected from gender-based abuse and are economically strengthened.
Project activities
Educate 30 boys and girls on sexual rights and health (SRH) and a gender-transformative approach (GTA).
Support girls’ football
Raise awareness of teen pregnancies and gender equality
Teach girls karate
Train girls in leadership
Communication with international female football stars
Expected results
15 girls and 15 boys trained in SRH and GTA
8,000 youngsters taught awareness of teen pregnancies and gender equality
12 girls’ football teams set up
30 girls taught karate
30 girls trained in leadership skills
Nationwide campaign on female empowerment with the support of international female football players
Access to Sport - 
Children with disabilities - 
Conflict victims - 
Gender Equality - 
Personal development
Infrastructure and equipment - 
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