Play for Change sports centre

Location and general information

Ongoing
Location Naples, Italy
Start date 01/01/2019
End date 07/31/2020
Cost of the project €123,050
Foundation funding €123,050
Project identifier EUR-2018735
Partners Play for Change
Categories Access to Sport - Children with disabilities - Personal development

Context

In partnership with Play for Change, the UEFA Foundation for Children supported the renovation of a sports centre located in the Sanità district of Naples, which provides an opportunity for disadvantaged children to access sport and educational activities, promoting inclusion and social engagement.

Rates of organised crime, unemployment and social exclusion are very high in this ethnically diverse district. More than 50% of youngsters drop out of school before the age of 16, ending up joining criminal gangs or groups of bored adolescents roaming the city and getting into trouble.

Project content

Sport is a catalyst for a cultural change and is used to impart the values of discipline, teamwork, fair play and commitment on children and teenagers in the hope that they are motivated to contribute to sustainable community development. The goal is to reduce the school drop-out and failure rates, inspire young people to pursue a career and prevent them from becoming involved with criminal gangs. Families and community members will encourage the positive change.

 

Objectives

• Reduce the school drop-out rate
• Prevent any form of criminal behaviour
• Promote healthy lifestyles
• Provide children with cultural development and physical training
• Integrate children from different backgrounds and those with any form of disability
• Create a community network for positive change

Project activities

The first few months of the project, from March 2019 to July 2019, were spent renovating the sports centre, assessing the risks and beneficiaries and meeting with local stakeholders.

Since the outset of the project, efforts have been made to establish a network of local stakeholders. As a result, the project is supported by local communities, institutions and sports partners, which will ensure its economic and social sustainability.

The sports centre was inaugurated on 10 July 2019. An open day was held with , athletes, coaches and educators, during which the project was presented to the neighbourhood and sports activities were showcased to the 150 children in attendance.

The activities began in October 2019 and to date 91 children between the ages of have taken part, including:

  • Thirty-nine girls and 52 boys.
  • Five children from immigrant families, three Sinhalese, one Romanian and one Nigerian, although all the participants have Italian nationality.
  • Seven children aged 3 to 5 years, 57 children aged 6 to 10 years and 27 aged 11 to 14 years.
  • Thirty-six practising gymnastics, 37 karate, seven fencing, seven baby gym and four .

More than 40 children were referred by the local network of social organisations, seven of whom have taken part in the project.

The rest of the participants live in the area and found out about the sports centre by word of mouth or through the public library.

GYMNASTICS: Two mixed-gender sessions are run for children aged 6 to 12. From January 2020, the sessions were divided into two groups. The first group comprises children aged 6 to 8 years, and the second those aged 9 to 12 years. The two groups train at the same time using different spaces in the gym. From January onwards, there was a marked improvement in terms of the behaviour and commitment of the participants.

KARATE: The activities have 37 participants, divided into two mixed groups. When necessary, training and activities are done as there are two instructors per group. At the beginning of 2020, two events for youngsters practising karate were held at the Champion Center sports hall in Scampia, another deprived area of Naples. The participants had the opportunity to train with other instructors and athletes.

FENCING: The course involved only seven children until the break for the Christmas holidays. In January, several children took part in a taster session, but decided not to register.

BABY GYM: The children who applied for the baby gym course have not yet taken part in the activities. Their parents have been contacted several times but, apart from the initial training session, it has not yet been possible to involve them continuously. Four of the children have dropped out entirely.

Expected results

Direct beneficiaries:

Between 100 and 300 children 3 to 14 years old: 10% migrants or refugees, 50% with challenging social backgrounds, 30% with disabilities, and 10% others.

  • Beneficiaries from extremely difficult backgrounds and families with a variety of issues, such as drug/alcohol abuse or incarceration; youth crime; sexual abuse; teenage pregnancy and teenage parenting; unhealthy nutrition; with limited access to life skills information; no coordinated access to sport.
  • Beneficiaries with vision and hearing disabilities (blind and deaf) and forms of autism

Indirect beneficiaries:

Four schools, two churches, six third-sector associations, 300 families, four sport centres, three institutional entities, and 500 community members.

Recent developments and future plans (May 2020):

The last regular training session before the beginning of the Covid-19 lockdown was held on 13 March. Project activities cannot currently be held.

During the lockdown, training videos are being used to keep in touch with the parents and children The instructors prepared videos, personally or through a targeted internet search, to be shared on the parents' WhatsApp groups and the project's Facebook page so that participants can continue to train safely. Parents were asked to share short videos on the WhatsApp group so that the instructors could correct form. From an educational point of view, it was considered important to maintain contact with the children, albeit indirectly, for two reasons: to preserve the relationships established so far and to reiterate the importance of adhering to the government's safety directives.

A summer sports camp is being planned for July 2020. Subject to government directives, it will be possible to evaluate the activities that have been planned in collaboration with the other organisations present in the territory. An with children with disabilities or autism will be taking place with the participants’ carers or parents.

If the camp cannot go ahead, new courses will be held from September 2020 with new participants and in collaboration with third-party sports organisations.

Partner

Goal Plus

Location and general information

Terminé
Location Switzerland
Start date 12/01/2016
End date 01/31/2020
Cost of the project €200,000
Foundation funding €160,000
Project identifier EUR–2018103
Partners PluSport, Axpo
Categories Access to Sport - Children with disabilities - Personal development

Context

PluSport is the umbrella organisation for disability sport in Switzerland. The UEFA Foundation for Children has been supporting the Goal Plus project, linked to PluSport’s football section, since 2016. The project aims to use football and the passion it creates to enable all disabled children and teenagers, including those who use wheelchairs, to play football. For these young people, playing football creates new opportunities for social connections, leisure activities, friendships, educational and professional integration, and acceptance in society.

In 2017, the foundation helped to fund the expansion of the Play Football project, which aims to increase the number of disabled children’s teams, as well as the From Football to Rafroball project. Rafroball is a sport for both wheelchair-users and able-bodied players.

In 2018, PluSport set itself the goal of developing and broadening disabled football in order to foster integration and bring through the next generation of young players. This work is constantly evolving. In addition to organised tournaments, new opportunities have been created for disabled children and teenagers to participate in football activities.

PluSport operates in accordance with Swiss Olympic’s Charter of Sports Ethics and recognises the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.

Project content

For the third consecutive year, the foundation’s support will help to strengthen PluSport’s football-related activities, focusing on two new areas in particular.

  1. Football for the blind and visually impaired: PluSport has decided to support and promote football for the blind and visually impaired, a sport that has been very popular at the Summer Paralympic Games for many years. Unfortunately, Switzerland does not enter a team. Our objective is, therefore, to see a Swiss team participate in the Paralympic Games. This programme will enable many blind and visually impaired youngsters to play football in spite of their visual impairments
  2. Girls’ football: until now, disabled football has mainly involved boys. However, thanks to its success and popularity, this sport is attracting greater interest among girls. PluSport is monitoring this trend, and we would like to help promote girls’ football. To achieve this, we need to work more and more with female experts, instructors and supervisors.

Target groups:

  • disabled and able-bodied children and teenagers throughout the country;
  • girls, in the context of women’s football; and
  • blind and visually impaired children and teenagers, in the context of football for the blind and visually impaired.

Objectives

  • The objectives laid down could be achieved during the course of this year.
    • Continue to facilitate access to ball games for disabled children and teenagers.
    • Create new ball sports teams for children and teenagers.
    • Promote and develop disability sport.
    • Establish new partnerships as part of the project.
    • In collaboration with all football-related associations, ensure that football clubs are open to disabled football and promote inclusion.
    • See a Swiss football team for the blind and visually impaired participate in the Paralympic Games.

Project activities

  • Integration of children and teenagers, individually or in groups, into PluSport clubs.
  • Creation and support of new PluSport football clubs throughout Switzerland.
  • Regular (weekly) training sessions, with supervision and coaching by PluSport.
  • Organised tournaments (five or six per year). The aim is to add two or three tournaments per year in different parts of Switzerland.
  • Football-themed afternoon gatherings for disabled and able-bodied children (schools, vocational schools, institutions).
  • Training sessions for girls are organised in the various regions.
  • Experts are trained and charged with promoting football for the blind and visually impaired throughout Switzerland and coaching the players.
  • Organisation of football camps for children and teenagers.
  • Sourcing of equipment for training sessions and tournaments.

Expected results

  • More PluSport football teams, especially girls’ teams and teams of blind and visually impaired children.
  • Disabled football is promoted through organised gatherings and tournaments for disabled and able-bodied children.
  • Addition of two or three new tournaments.
  • More girls participating in disabled football.
  • New football camps organised for disabled children and teenagers.
  • Expert coaches trained to organise football training sessions for the blind and visually impaired.
  • Creation of a Swiss football team for the blind and visually impaired.

Partner

Come On, Let’s Play

Location and general information

Terminé
Location Ukraine
Start date 04/15/2019
End date 04/30/2020
Cost of the project €84,036
Foundation funding €58,400
Project identifier EUR-2018297
Partners Shakhtar Social
Categories Access to Sport - Children with disabilities - Conflict victims - Personal development

Context

FC Shakhtar Donetsk was based in the town of Donetsk until 2014. Due to the military conflict in the Eastern Ukraine, the club has relocated to Kyiv. Some of Donetsk’s inhabitants have also been forced to move away. According to government data, more than 1.6 million people escaped the conflict region and eight cities near Donetsk, namely: Krasnohorivka, Marinka, Kurakhove, Avdiivka, Shchastya, Popasna, Toretsk and Volnovakha. Some of the children from this region have sustained injuries as a direct result of the military conflict.

Project content

“Come On, Let’s Play!” is a grassroots project which aims to help migrant children from the war zone in Eastern Ukraine, and disadvantaged and disabled children living close to the frontline. Football is a way to instil values, such as respect, integration, responsibility, fun, physical exercise, psychological support and personal development, in these children. The programme includes regular football training sessions for juniors and disabled children, competitions and a final tournament. The possibility of meeting and playing with players from FC Shakhtar’s first team is an additional motivation for these children.

Objectives

In close co-operation with local partners and an international partner – EFDN, the grassroots football project “Come On, Let’s Play!” aims to improve access to football for children living close to the frontline, refugees and socially disadvantaged children.

It seeks to promote social inclusion, improve children’s quality of life, boost extracurricular learning and activities and provide relief from the pressures of living in a crisis area. The main beneficiaries are children aged between 7 and 12, including disabled children. The project aims to attract 620 participants.

Project activities

The first activity is a “Come On, Let’s Play!” grassroots football project for children aged between 7 and 12, with the aim of improving the social inclusion of children living close to the frontline.

It will be a 12-month programme comprising the following elements.

  • Free football sessions held three times a week by the main coach and two volunteers.
  • The main coach and volunteers train 60 children per playground (with the exception of Toretsk – 80 participants) in two different age groups (U10 and U12), with at least 10% of participants being girls.
  • Four groups of disabled children will be trained in four project locations, involving 40 children.
  • The disabled children will have an adapted programme and will be provided with the necessary equipment.
  • During the implementation of the project, FC Shakhtar first team players will visit each project location and play a football game with the children.
  • The Saturday football session will include football matches between different age groups.
  • The children will be provided with all the necessary equipment: training kits, balls, flat disks, bibs, a whistle, football nets, first aid kits, pumps, freeze sprays and coordination ladders.

 

The second activity is the “Come On, Let’s Play!” competition (one day). Twice a year, a local “Come On, Let’s Play!” competition will be held at each playground, in autumn 2019 and spring 2020. These competitions aim to enhance the children’s enjoyment, promoting a healthy lifestyle and allowing them to meet other children in locations close to the frontline. The participants of the “Come On, Let’s Play!” competition are organised into U10 and U12 teams. The expected number of participants is 480, with a minimum of 10% being girls.

 

The third activity is the “Come On, Let’s play!” final tournament in Volnovakha (two days). The “Come On, Let’s Play!” final tournament aims to unite all participants from the locations close to the frontline and promote social inclusion. It will take place in Volnovakha in April 2020. The final tournament will feature four U10 teams and four U12 teams from the eight different towns located close to the frontline. The total number of participants is 80 children aged between 7 and 12, with at least one girl per team. There will be 30 support staff (coaches and parents). Each town is allowed to put forward just one team of ten participants in one of the two age categories (U10 or U12). The tournament participants will be provided with accommodation, food and refreshments.

Expected results

  • 620 children aged between 7 and 12 are expected to benefit from the “Come On, Let’s Play” programme.
  • Regular football training sessions will take place three times a week in two age categories (U10 and U12).
  • Two local tournaments will be held in autumn 2019 and spring 2020 involving 480 participants.
  • One final tournament will be held in Volnovakha in April 2020 involving one team from each of the eight cities.

Partner

Girls’ football league: Mutola Cup

Location and general information

Terminé
Location Mozambique
Start date 02/01/2019
End date 11/30/2019
Cost of the project €200,000
Foundation funding €80,000
Project identifier AFR-2018573
Partners Futebol dá Força
Categories Access to Sport - Personal development

Context

In Mozambique 60% of the population lives below the international poverty line. Traditional social practices deteriorate the situation further; the educational system remains poor and 50% of Mozambican girls marry before the age of 18. Early marriages lead to less power in decision-making and early unwanted pregnancies, increasing the risk of maternal and child mortality. In this context, girls unfortunately have very few ways of obtaining information and support when they need it.

To improve the situation, alternative educational platforms that can reach girls need to be set up, empowering these young women by giving them knowledge and practical information on how to exercise their rights daily. The independent foundation, Futebol dá força, which uses football to empower girls is actively engaged in creating this educational platform for both girls and their community. By providing safe places and football teams with well-equipped leaders, the goal is to influence girls’ ability to improve their own future prospects.

Project content

Futebol dá força has a plan to develop a girls’ football league in Mozambique called the Mutola Cup. The football league is a structure which already exists, and it is run jointly by local stakeholders, such as the Mozambican Ministry of Education, Ministry of Youth and Sports and Ministry of Health, as well as the Mozambican Football Association. Concretely, training sessions and football matches will be organised, as well as workshops and interactive discussions on topics including life skills, children's rights and sexual and reproductive health. This will create an established safe space where people, especially girls, can engage in dialogue.

 

Objectives

  • Reaching 15,000 girls (aged 11 to 15), increasing their awareness of children's rights and health issues
  • Empowering these girls to build agency and increase their self-esteem
  • Engaging community members to highlight the role they play in girls’ strategic life choices
  • Training 800 voluntary football coaches, of which 100 should be female
  • Organising football training, matches and workshops
  • Maintaining low costs, in order to integrate the project as part of everyday activities
  • Having a long-term impact, which means working closely with the national structures

Project activities

The girls’ football teams will have several weekly training sessions between February and November. The training sessions, reaching 15,000 girls (15 to 25 per team), will take place in eleven provinces in Mozambique. In parallel, together with local stakeholders, the Mutola Cup football league will take place between April and October, as part of which girls’ football teams will play games every Saturday at district level.

Before each football game, the 800 volunteer coaches trained will facilitate a workshop with the girls on key topics linked to their rights and health with the purpose of increasing their ability to make informed decisions regarding their future. The workshop themes will be streamlined throughout the football league so that all teams get access to the same evidence-based information.

In addition to the girls' workshops and between games, the coaches will engage spectators at the football grounds. In this way, the message will also be shared with the girls’ parents, friends, siblings and other community members, meaning approximately 45,000 individuals. Here, the focus will be on how community members can apply children's rights, in particular sexual and reproductive health rights, to support girls in their decision-making processes.

Expected results

In practice, Futebol dá força will look at a number of indicators measuring the current situation and future opportunities for girls, to assess whether the expected changes in attitudes and behaviour actually take place. These indicators include:

  • girls' views of their own value (self-esteem)
  • attitudes in relation to gender equality
  • assessment of girls’ treatment by the surrounding community
  • access to educational opportunities
  • number of early marriages, pregnancies, school drop-outs and cases of abuse

The objective is to track the achievable outcomes by doing a baseline survey and monitoring the activities and their quality. Regular visits will be conducted and, at the end of the project year, a follow-up end-line survey will be conducted.

 

Partner

Give Everyone a Chance

Location and general information

Closed
Location Central and northern Hungary
Start date 01/01/2018
End date 12/31/2019
Cost of the project €76,180
Foundation funding €60,680
Project identifier EUR_2018493
Partners Oltalom Sport Association, John Wesley Primary and Secondary School, Girls’ correctional institution, Home for Unaccompanied Minors, Oltalom Charity Society, Prevention Centre
Categories Access to Sport - Children with disabilities - Conflict victims - Personal development

Context

Oltalom Sport Association (OSA) was founded by a group of individuals and NGOs in Hungary in 2005. Its goal is to use sport as a tool to increase self-esteem and promote a healthy lifestyle among people from disadvantaged backgrounds. Playing football with teams from other social groups enhances the social integration of the target group. OSA provides free, regular football training sessions and equipment for homeless people, refugees, disadvantaged young people and children.

The young participants come from dysfunctional families that lack one or both parents and face constant problems with unemployment, substance use, housing and finance. Many are also abused and neglected. Other problems they face include criminal behaviour brought on by the lack of secure employment, a shortage of employment opportunities and insufficient education. OSA also works with refugees and homeless people, with many participants coming from a refugee or migrant background. Attitudes towards migrants and refugees that have emerged in Hungary in the past few years make their situation in the country difficult. They also have to cope with problems such as post traumatic stress disorder, which requires urgent treatment, a lack of family and friends, loneliness and isolation from mainstream society.

 

Project content

OSA has developed a programme of regular training sessions at local schools in Budapest to help Roma minorities, migrants and refugees to develop their skills. The weekly sessions are held at six locations (three pitches in Budapest, a girls’ correctional institution, John Wesley Primary School and Fót Home for Unaccompanied Minors). As OSA does not have its own permanent pitch, training sessions are held on public pitches or at residential homes.

As in previous years, OSA will organise Fair Play Football Roadshows at six different locations – three in Hungary and three in neighbouring countries – using a portable pitch that was purchased with the support of the UEFA Foundation for Children.

OSA also runs a scholarship programme for participants in an employment scheme that helps beneficiaries find suitable jobs or start or complete their education.

OSA also provides continuous social support through a network of social workers who help resolve housing, employment, education, health care and administrative issues. Focusing on individual needs, social workers create individual development plans in order to offer a more comprehensive, customised service.

Objectives

  • to enhance participants’ physical and mental health
  • to increase participants’ employability
  • to develop participants’ English language skills
  • to enhance refugee inclusion
  • to increase social connections by organising Fair Play Football Roadshows and international tournaments

Project activities

  • Regular football training sessions in six different locations
  • Fair Play Football Roadshows
  • Scholarships for young leaders and street soccer coaches
  • Workshops:
    • Health education
    • Prevention and handling of bullying
    • Appreciative inquiry

-     Girls’ club: a group activity for female participants focusing on sex education, partner violence, various issues linked to gender and relationships, and opportunities to increase social connections.

  • Continuous social support
  • Data collection for monitoring activity

Expected results

Fair Play Football Roadshows will be held at three locations in Hungary and three in other countries. In 2019, two coaches from developing countries (India, South America, etc.) will be invited to help train and educate OSA and other Hungarian coaches. Since the target group includes children with health problems such as obesity and diseases caused by lack of knowledge about healthy nutrition, OSA will organise monthly workshops on themes such as personal hygiene, physical changes, basic anatomical knowledge, nutrition, etc.

In summer 2019, OSA will organise a five-day football camp in north-eastern Hungary for 40 children, five staff members and between five and eight volunteers.

OSA will participate in four international events across Europe: the Wroclaw Trophy, the EU Fair Play Street Soccer Championship, the European Street Football Festival and the Homeless World Cup in Cardiff, Wales (although the latter was not mentioned in the proposal).

Through its activities, OSA tries to improve participants’ life skills and problem-solving abilities in order to increase their chances of a successful future.

Partner

Solidarité aveugle ; Blind Solidarity

Location and general information

Context

The project began with keen photographer Catherine Cabrol taking pictures of blind and partially sighted children at the Institut des Jeunes Aveugles (IJA), a school for blind children in Bamako. Catherine, who is also founder of the Libre Vue (Free View) association, wanted to connect with these girls and boys in a meaningful way and help them by selling her photos to fund a project to introduce them to blind football.

Thanks to her photography and the support of benefactors, Libre Vue was able to build a pitch designed especially for blind football, which opened in October 2012.

Solidarité Aveugle (Blind Solidarity) is a sustainable project designed to promote and develop blind football activities at the IJA. Focusing on the considerable needs of the school, the project aims to improve the lives of blind and partially sighted children by using football as a force for integration and development. By visiting mainstream schools, the project also aims to raise awareness among other children and change attitudes towards disability and difference. Sport plays an educational role, promotes important values, combats exclusion, improves well-being and increases self-esteem. At the IJA, the children receive special education, but in difficult conditions and with poor infrastructure. Sports facilities are limited and the football pitch, which floods during the monsoon season, requires regular maintenance.

Project content

In 2017, Libre Vue received initial support from the foundation following the annual call for projects. This funding was used to achieve the following objectives:

  • management of the sports centre and its activities;
  • first-rate training of coaches and young players in blind football, in accordance with international standards;
  • organisation of Mali’s first blind football cup; the first official tournament in Bamako was finally held as described in the interim report
  • raising awareness of visual impairment among the young people of Bamako;
  • building of new facilities, including separate showers and changing rooms for girls and boys. This ‘house for blind football’ project was finally launched at the end of 2018 and will finish in April 2019. The part of the grant earmarked for this project was therefore used at the end of last year.
  • participation of young people from Libre Vue in the Africa Cup of Nations thanks to additional funding alongside the association’s crowdfunding campaign

Results obtained:

  • 120 young people, including 35 girls, aged between 7 and 25 benefited from the project.
  • Four weekly training sessions were organised.
  • Eleven coaches were trained by a coach and a player from the French blind football team.
  • The ten best youngsters participated in the CAN2017 in Cape Verde, winning a silver medal that enabled them to qualify for the Blind Football World Championships in Spain in 2018

At the IBSA Blind Football World Championships held in Madrid in June 2018, the Mali team finished tenth out of 16 participating nations, a remarkable performance for a first appearance.

[Photo of the Mali team at the World Championships]

On 21 April 2018, UEFA and the United Nations Office in Geneva joined forces to organise the Match for Solidarity. All the gate receipts, along with funds generated by an auction, were donated to humanitarian and development projects selected by the UEFA Foundation for Children.

Some of this income was used to provide a second payment to the Blind Football in Bamako project. Further activities are being planned for 2019 and 2020.

Objectives

  • Make blind football more accessible: annual pitch maintenance and gradual renovation of existing facilities; replacement of sports equipment (bell balls, including Youthorama mini-balls (also recently provided by your organisation), blindfolds, shirts, shin guards, bags, boots); and purchase of specific equipment for girls (sports bras).
  • Promote elite performance: support from an expert coach for competition preparation, assistance from therapists; purchase of specific equipment (treadmill, exercise bike and street workout equipment); training for referees and guides; and coach education.
  • Adapt the ‘house for blind football’ partially funded by the foundation (opening in spring 2019): furniture for the changing rooms and teaching staff offices; and energy-producing technologies (solar panels to heat water for the showers and generate electricity for the building).
  • Encourage girls: launch of an art project combining photography and a poetry competition to help partially sighted girls excel; organisation of an event at the French Institute in Bamako; and publication of an explanatory booklet.
  • Promote economic and social integration: help with clothing and mobility (white sticks, transport subsidies); awareness-raising in schools; academic support (braille paper, portable braille computers for older children); and creation of a professional integration centre involving companies in Bamako.

Project activities

  • 120 blind and partially sighted children participate in blind football activities, with access to a new building with changing rooms and showers
  • 20 youngsters are given extra support to play at elite level
  • 12 youngsters receive support with professional integration from a dedicated project manager
  • 120 young people receive general support
  • 16 girls involved in an art project

Partners

We welcome young refugees

Location and general information

Context

Royal Europa 90 Kraainem Football Club is an amateur club in the eastern suburbs of Brussels. With 350 young players of 42 different nationalities, the club stands out as a true model of cultural diversity. This is reflected at every level, from the children to the managers, coaches and volunteers. The club puts this diversity to good use.

Kraainem FC has always been proactive in its efforts to promote social integration and is convinced that football is more than just a game. As a grassroots sports organisation, it feels it has an important role to play in inculcating all the social and societal values of sport in its young players, to make them not only better footballers but also better citizens.

In the wake of the migration crisis of 2015, the club decided to become an example of proactive social integration by adapting its everyday activities so that it could involve young refugees in the life of the club. It now provides football training, language classes and various other activities, and its work with young refugees has become an essential pillar of club life.

The project specifically targets unaccompanied minors seeking asylum in Belgium. As the home countries of these children are wracked by war or great instability, they are likely to stay in Belgium, where they find themselves in new surroundings with a completely different lifestyle, yet lack the cultural or linguistic knowledge they need to fit in. The task is therefore not merely to welcome them but also to give them the tools they need to successfully integrate into Belgian society and professional life.

Project content

Each week, the club welcomes around 30 unaccompanied refugees aged between 10 and 18 under a partnership agreement between Kraainem FC and FEDASIL (the governmental organisation in charge of welcoming asylum seekers). Three times a week, a group of six to ten children are brought from a local asylum centre to spend the afternoon at the club. The youngsters share in the normal life of the club, train with a qualified coach and attend teaching sessions such as French and Dutch language classes. They also receive free equipment and lunch in the club cafeteria.

The initiative has been a tremendous success for the club, the reception centres and, most importantly, the young refugees themselves. Local, national and European media have regularly covered the Kraainem project. This has encouraged the club to take the project a step further, not only by consolidating its own activities, but also by raising awareness and supporting other Belgian clubs that wish to follow suit.

Objectives

  • Invite 30 unaccompanied minors aged 10 to 18 to join in the club’s activities each week.
  • Encourage other clubs and refugee centres to launch similar projects, in collaboration with the Royal Belgian Football Association.
  • Share experiences with other Belgian clubs working with refugees.
  • Organise football weeks during school holidays for club players and refugees. Mornings will be dedicated to training sessions and afternoons to excursions and cultural exchanges.

Expected results

Kraainem FC has been running this project for four years. By the end of the 2018/19 season, more than 2,000 refugees and asylum seekers will have been welcomed at the club. Some of them only attend a few times before being transferred to another reception centre where they will continue with their integration process. Others are able to attend on a regular basis and become full members, enabling them to play competitive matches at the weekend. The aim is to have around 20 refugees as club members every year.

This project has enabled the club to establish itself on the Belgian footballing map. In collaboration with the Belgian FA, Kraainem FC’s model has been shared all around the country, inspiring other football clubs. More than 40 Belgian clubs have so far launched similar initiatives, joining a national network launched by the Belgian FA. Kraainem FC wants to continue to inspire others by exporting its model abroad and creating a Europe-wide network. It is also reaching out to other sports federations in Belgium, as football is not the only discipline that brings people together.

Nobody cannot make a significant difference on their own. However, by joining forces with other civil society initiatives, Kraainem FC can expect to have an impact on the future of asylum seekers in Belgium. Through its daily sessions, it hopes to help improve the lives of the participants, who have fled misery, civil war and persecution, and who are hoping to start a new chapter of their lives.

Partners

Logo Kraainem

Active Lives

Location and general information

Terminé
Location England
Start date 02/01/2020
End date 12/31/2020
Cost of the project €1,156,610
Foundation funding €50,000
Project identifier EUR-2018347 - 2019729
Partners Newcastle United Foundation
Categories Access to Sport - Children with disabilities - Personal development

Context

Whatever their differences, all children have the right to play and to enjoy the best conditions to stay fit and healthy. Unfortunately, this is not a reality for many disabled children, especially those living in disadvantaged areas. In England, disability is most prevalent in the north: in a survey conducted by the Department for Work and Pensions in 2015/16, 25% of people in the northeast reported a disability, compared with only 14% in London.[1] In this context, the Newcastle United Foundation wishes to use the power of football to overcome barriers and ensure that disadvantaged and disabled children are not left behind but are given opportunities to participate in a wide range of sports, to learn, to stay healthy and to have fun.

[1] Department for Work and Pensions Family Resources Survey 2015/16

Project content

The aim is to establish a regional centre of excellence for disability sport, where disabled people of all ages and abilities will be able to enjoy sport and exercise without barriers as part of a ground-breaking activity programme using high-quality indoor facilities. The flagship centre will not only promote active lifestyles and the recreational enjoyment of sport alongside the associated health and well-being benefits; it will also raise aspirations and support the development of Paralympic champions of the future. A wide programme of pan-disability and disability-specific football sessions will be offered under one roof at this brand-new centre, which will be accessible to individuals and families from across northeastern England and encourage them to get active and stay active for life.

Objectives

The project will give disabled children the opportunity to improve their fitness, mobility and balance. Football and other physical activities will also be used as a tool to help participants build their self-confidence, make friends and achieve their own personal goals on the football pitch and in life.

Project activities

The new centre will be home to numerous clubs and teams offering weekly sessions for children in the following areas:

  • DSActive (sport for people with Down’s Syndrome)
  • Visually impaired football
  • Deaf football
  • Cerebral palsy football
  • Amputee football
  • Walking football
  • Frame football
  • Pan-disability sessions
  • Powerchair football
  • Sensory sports

The centre will provide a venue for regular disability football matches and competitions with other teams and groups from across the UK, bringing flagship disability sports events to the city. In addition, the centre will be a thriving community hub on matchdays, offering matchday experiences for disabled fans and a home for the Newcastle United Disabled Supporters Association.

All registered users of the centre will be able to access the wide variety of programmes delivered by the Newcastle United Foundation, including personal development, education, employability, and health and well-being programmes. The centre will also be accessible to schools and community organisations that support disabled and disadvantaged people.

Expected results

  • Host 10 disability football clubs, each offering weekly sessions for 36 weeks of the year
  • Work with 40 schools for children with special educational needs
  • Work with 35 regional disability support organisations
  • Organise 15 festivals, tournaments and competitions for 1,000 disabled people
  • Deliver a comprehensive coach education programme and continuous professional development for 100 coaches of disabled footballers and athletes
  • Recruit 50 disabled young adults for a personal development programme

Partner

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

Location and general information

Context

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

Project content

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

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

Objectives

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

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

Project Activities

‘Let’s Move’ sports sessions

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

‘Life Skills’ sessions

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

Educational support

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

Camps and other weekend and holiday activities

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

Monthly meetings and training sessions for the six young coaches

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

Expected results

Specific objective A:

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

Expected results A:

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

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

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

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

Specific objective B:

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

Expected results B:

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

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

Partners

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

Open Fun Football Schools programme – Playing for peace

Location and general information

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

Context

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

Project content

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

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

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

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

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

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

Objectives

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

Project activities

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

Expected results

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

Partners

Football for Inclusion – Everyone invited to the pitch!

Location and general information

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

Context

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

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

Project content

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

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

Objectives

Andar’s programme aims to:

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

Project activities

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

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

Expected results

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

Partner

Field in a Box – Rio Doce, Brazil

Location and general information

CONTEXT

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

PROJECT CONTENT

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

OBJECTIVES

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

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

RESULTS TO DATE AND EXPECTED OUTCOMES

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

PARTNERS



Logo street football world

Field in a Box – Pirapora do Bom Jesus, Brazil

Situation géographique et informations générales

Context

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

Project content

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

Objectives

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

Results to date and expected outcomes 

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

Partners



Logo street football world

 

Football Film Festival

Situation géographique et informations générales

Context

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

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

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

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

Project content

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

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

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

The festival had three sections:

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

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

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

Activities included:

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

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

Objectives

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

 

Expected results

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

Partner

Football for Development after-school programme

Location and general information

Context

Cambodia has a population of just over 15.2 million, more than one-third of whom are below the age of 18 (UNICEF; 2012 data), and 17.7% live below the poverty line (World Bank; 2012 data). In the city of Battambang, where average earnings are less than $0.50 a day, the situation is even worse. This results in large numbers of children leaving school early in order to try to earn a living. The Cambodian school system does not provide for any kind of physical education, so many of those children living in poverty are also deprived of the benefits of sport.

Project content

The SALT Academy’s Football for Development project seeks to use football to effect social change – both in Battambang and beyond. The project’s organisers run workshops teaching sport and key life skills to pupils at state primary schools in the city and the surrounding area, seeking to turn those children into active citizens and leaders within their respective communities. The football3* methodology forms an integral part of this project, being used to promote values such as respect, integration and solidarity.

* Football3 methodology is used by the streetfootballworld network. It harnesses the educational potential of street football by ensuring that dialogue and fair play are integral to the game. Its overall objective is to promote life skills and empower young people to become leaders. The emphasis is on resolving conflict through dialogue.

Expected results

The project’s organisers will run educational programmes teaching key life skills, which will cover 12 different subjects, and a total of 60 activities will be organised in parallel. Football activities and the football3 methodology, which lie at the very heart of this project, will be used to promote its values. The training of coaches will allow the project’s objectives to be achieved in other schools in due course.

Partners

Inclusion of children with disabilities in Bolivia

Location and general information

Context

In the United Nations Development Programme’s most recent Human Development Report, Bolivia was ranked 118th out of 188 countries, making it one of the least developed countries in South America. With a population of 1.8 million, Cochabamba is one of the most populous of Bolivia’s nine departments. This project is being carried out in Sacaba, Cochabamba’s second city in Cochabamba Department, where 36,3% (statistics from Instituta Nacional de Estadistica)  censosbolivia)of the population live below the poverty line and many persons with disabilities are unable to gain an education or access required specialist health care services.

Project content

The discrimination that children and youth with disabilities face in Sacaba represents a significant barrier to their personal and social development. Light for the World International organises workshops and fun sporting activities for those children in a bid to end their isolation by promoting an inclusive approach to education and changing perceptions of disability in Bolivia.

Objectives

  • Strengthen relations between children and youth with disabilities (beneficiaries) and their families
  • Build up the self-confidence of the beneficiaries
  • Foster the social inclusion of the beneficiaries
  • Contribute to mainstreaming disability inclusion in local networks and regulations of the municipal government
  • Improve access to health services for children and youth with disabilities
  • Promote inclusive education for children with disabilities
  • Train youth with disabilities to access the labour market
  • Empower children and youth with disabilities, as well as their families to stand up for their rights

Expected results

  • Organisation of fun sporting activities for children and their families at regular intervals during the year
  • Organisation of sporting activities such as athletics, swimming, basketball, football, handball, slalom and dancing two or three times a week
  • Training of sports teachers at the Simón Rodríguez Teacher Training College to foster the social integration of participating children
  • Organisation of annual competitions and tournaments for people with disabilities to change the negative perception of disability in Bolivia in cooperation with EIFODEC (Escuela de Integración y Formación Deportiva, Expresión Artistica y Entrenamiento Laboral/ School for Integration, sports training, artistic expression and vocational training)
  • Organisation of 40 visits to schools to foster communication between children with and without disabilities

Partners