Empowering African communities through education and football

Transcription

1 Empowering African communities through education and football

2 Who we Are What Africa on the Ball is a non-profit organisation, which uses football and education to empower and support African communities to live full, healthy and sustainable lives. Why In Zambia everyday 200 people become infected with the HIV virus. In Zambia the average life expectancy is just below 40 years of age. According to The Shackled Continent, the Zambian government spends approximately 136 times more funds on University education than primary education. Although there are many football academies in Africa, there are currently no national academies and none, which offer places to girls. Africa on the Ball would also be unique in the fact it subsidises tuition fees for its students and places a heavy emphasis on the value of education. Africa on the Ball intends to have an impact in the field of football and facilities, HIV/AIDS, education and also in the UK in the form of volunteering. Our values are to place emphasis upon education and empowerment, equality and sustainability. How Africa on the Ball breaks down into two separate projects: The Football Academy and an outreach program. The outreach program would use the power of football as a vehicle for development and the prevention of HIV/AIDS in communities in Africa. Working with other organisations and incorporating other programs such as: Kicking AIDS Out, Tackle Africa, Alive and Kicking, Friend of EduSport and Auderes.

3 Mission, Vision and Values Our Vision: We exist to empower, inspire and support African communities and individuals to lead full, healthy and sustainable lives. We Change lives through Football. Our Mission: Our mission is to be an independent, dynamic, ambitious, ethical, socially inclusive and sustainable organisation which strives to empower African communities and individuals through sport and education in order to enhance the quality of their lives and self development journeys. Our Values: Social inclusion & Diversity - Africa on the Ball has a strong ethos around promoting the inclusion of all members of society and champion equality in participation. We believe diversity makes communities stronger and therefore embrace any opportunity to promote cross-cultural exchanges and partnerships. Empowerment - Africa on the Ball believes in the importance of education to empower nations and communities to achieve better living conditions. Role Models - We believe it is our responsibility to serve as role models in the communities in which we operate and promote the same ethos to anyone who becomes involved in what we do. We are committed to promoting social responsibility and empower future role models to inspire their communities. Sustainability - We are committed to promote and achieving financial and environmental sustainability in everything we do and all communities in which we operate.

4 Strategic Aims We Aim to : 1. Education & Development - support and widen access to education and self-development opportunities; 2. Sport - promote and support participation and social inclusion in sport, utilising it wherever possible as a vehicle to engage communities, overcome barriers and deliver key messages; 3. Health - empower communities to live healthy lives, free from HIV and AIDS; 4. Sustainability - ensure Africa on the Ball is a financially and environmentally sustainable organisation, promoting the same value in communities in which we operate. Enabled by Committed, flexible and skilled people. Effective marketing, communications and digital technology development. Partnership working and productive collaborations.

5 Strategic Plan 1. Education & Development - support and widen access to education and self-development opportunities; We will achieve our aim by: subsidising access to primary and secondary education in Africa delivering meaningful programs aimed at developing transferable skills offering personal and professional development opportunities creating opportunities for intercultural experiences and exchanges Context: According to UNESCO s Regional overview on sub-saharan Africa, in % of children were enrolled in primary schools, the lowest enrollment rate of any region. Africa has more than 40 million children, almost half the school-age child population, receiving no schooling. Two-thirds of these are girls. The USAID Center reports that as of 2005, 40% of school-age children in Africa do not attend primary school and there are still 46 million school-age African children who have never stepped into a classroom. Drop-out rates in sub-saharan Africa remain high. Achieving universal primary education requires more than full enrolment. It also means ensuring that children continue to attend classes. In sub-saharan Africa, more than 30 percent of primary school students drop out before reaching a final grade. Challenges: Corruption Gender Disparity - historically there has been gender disparity in education, with two thirds of school not in education being girls. Military and Conflict Lack of infrastructures and primary education governmental subsidies Poverty - for a poor households facing an economic crisis or shock, education fees may be one of the most expendable commodities. Lack of education in turn has a self-perpetuating effect on poverty, as uneducated individuals are likely to be trapped into low paid, un-skilled labour, which will make their household more vulnerable to the drivers of poverty.

6 Strategic Plan 2. Sport - promote and support participation and social inclusion in sport, utilising it wherever possible as a vehicle to engage communities, overcome barriers and deliver key messages. We will achieve our aim by: to create participation opportunities for youth in Africa to widen access to football regardless of age, gender, ability, creed and religion to promote healthy living, social inclusion, personal and professional development opportunities and empowerement through football to foster and develop African football talent, helping further develop the quality of football within Africa at amateur and professional level to improve and provide sport facilities and resources (kit, coaching, sport facilities, transport, etc.) Context: Sport in Africa is practiced in a different capacity than perhaps in developed countries. Sport is often seen as a leisure activity, not always linked to practical benefits. Africa on the Ball seeks to challenge this view and link sport to other benefits such as development of transferrable skills and increased opportunities such as education and health. Sport in Africa is also severely under-funded, perhaps understandably if all other challenges and socio-economic conditions are analysed and considered. We aim to alleviate this and provide (within our means) improved sport facilities and improved access to sport. Sport in Africa also sees great disparities in participation, mainly based on physical fitness/ ability and gender. Africa on the Ball aims to challenge the status-quo and use sport as a tool to promote social inclusion and fight gender disparity. A positive note worthy of mention is the fact that African youth can be extremely passionate about football which is something Africa on the Ball can fully utilise to achieve its aims. Challenges: Lack of infrastructures and provision for sport. Poverty and securing sustainable livelihoods often means sport is seen as a leisure activity not always linked to practical benefits.

7 Strategic Plan 3. Health - empower communities to live healthy lives, free from HIV and AIDS. We will achieve our aim by: promoting and widening access to HIV/AIDS testing decreasing stigma of HIV/AIDS positive individuals and provide support systems for those infected and their families empowering individuals and communities to lead healthy lives through education on Health & Wellbeing including, nutrition, sanitation, first aid training, hygiene and sanitation, prevention of malaria and infectious diseases, STIs, etc. and provision of facilities/materials (condoms, mosquito nets, first aid kits, etc.). Context: In 2009, nearly 76,000 adults were newly infected with HIV in Africa, that is about 200 new infections each day. Knowledge about HIV is the first step to avoiding its transmission. Yet less than one third of young men and only a fifth of young women in developing countries know basic facts about the virus. Although condom use has gained acceptance in some countries, global use remains low, especially among young adults in developing countries. Half the world s population is at risk of malaria. There were an estimated 243 million cases of malaria in 2008, causing 863,000 deaths, 89 per cent of them in Africa. The disease is also a chief contributor to anemia among children and pregnant mothers. Africa has one fifth of the world s children under the age of five, and it accounted for half of their 8.8 million deaths in The causes of child deaths are related to malnutrition and lack of access to adequate primary health care and infrastructure, such as water and sanitation, in many developing countries. Pneumonia, diarrhea, malaria and AIDS accounted for 43 per cent of all deaths in under-fives worldwide in 2008, and more than a third of all child deaths were attributable to undernutrition. Challenges: Lack of state subsidised infrastructures, drugs and materials HIV/AIDS and malaria infection rates Remoteness of communities in rural areas Native languages in remote areas with low use/knowledge of English Traditional medicine beliefs

8 Strategic Plan 4. Sustainability - ensure Africa on the Ball is a financially and environmentally sustainable organisation, promoting the same value in communities in which we operate. We will achieve our aim by: monthly donations and sponsorships institutional funding exploit fundraising opportunities social enterprise ventures engage all levels of community work with meaningful partners to avoid duplication & maximise impact make environmentally sustainable choices when possible and to promote and educate on environmental sustainability throughout our work to work with and complement the efforts of like minded organisations to achieve our aims, promoting cooperation, inclusion and the sharing of information and resources to generate income for the project through sales of players to semi professional and professional football clubs Context: Nearly 17,000 species of plants and animals are currently at risk of extinction, and the number of species threatened by extinction is growing by the day. Despite increased investment, the main causes of biodiversity loss - high rates of consumption, habitat loss, invasive species, pollution and climate change - are not being sufficiently addressed. Biodiversity is vitally important; billions of people rely directly on diverse species for their livelihoods and often survival. Deforestation rates have slowed, but remain fastest in some of the world s most biologically diverse regions. Africa continues to show one of the largest net losses of forests. Challenges: Current financial climate - local donors and funders may be less inclined to support development work in developing countries. Lack of knowledge and infrastructure - Lack of environmentally sustainable waste disposal and renewable energy infrastructure in Africa presents challenges to environmental sustainability. The lack of knowledge of the impact of waste disposal, deforestation, climate change and carbon emissions can also present a challenge in changing behaviours. Poverty - poor household often rely on exploitation of natural resources such as wood and nearby land. However good and sustainable management of these has beneficial effects on their livelihoods.

9 Stakeholders Board of Directors Africa on the Ball is governed by the board of Directors as according to its constitution (available from The organisation s will not have a closed membership and a single-tier governance structure, meaning the only members of the organisation are the Board of Directors who are also the organisation s trustees. Trustees are elected into position by the current members of the Board for a period of 2 years, after which they must either resign or stand for re-election. there is no maximum period of service for Trustees/Directors. Any member of the general public who is interested in the organisation s work and is eligible to become Trustee according to the Charities and Trustee Investment Act 2005 (available online at: acts2005/ htm) can stand to become a Director. There are currently three Directors on the Board of Africa on the Ball with a view for a board of trustees of seven. Beneficiaries African communities and youth are our main beneficiaries. However we hope the benefits of our work will spread far beyond this and reach other groups such as the volunteers that will participate in our programs, our supporters and donors, partner organisations, and whoever else will choose to be involved in our work and contribute to our legacy. Partner organisations Africa on the Ball has so far worked alongside and in partnership with a number of like-minded organisations. These are amongst others: Mount Kilimanjaro First Aid Community Project Edusport High Five Club Tackle Africa Zambian FA YES!Tanzania Alive and Kicking We understand the importance of global and local partnerships in achieving our aims and hope to continue foster and develop new and existing partnerships for the benefit of African communities and all our stakeholders.

10 Stakeholders Supporters & Donors So far (2012) most of our funding has come from fundraising events organised approximately on a quarterly basis. We also have a small base of monthly donors and we also receive occasional individual and corporate contributions consisting of donations of unwanted items or the purchase of our branded merchandise. We try to be as creative as possible with our fundraisers, so far having hosted football tournaments, sweepstakes, quiz nights, etc. We are also planning to host sponsorship based fundraisers such as a fire/glass walk and in the longer term a sponsored climb of Mount Kilimanjaro. We cannot thank enough all our supporters and donors, who have made our work possible and who are changing lives in Africa. Volunteers Africa on the Ball relies heavily on volunteers and external supporters. Our football coaches and field management staff are currently all volunteers. As these members of staff are local Africa on the Ball aims to introduce paid wages wherever possible. Africa on the Ball also relies on a number of volunteers based in the UK. Fundraising volunteers and Trustees give up their time on a volunteering basis, although some expenses may be refunded.

11 Current Progress 2010 Kalingalinga boys football team is recruited Backing gained from Zambian FA Volunteer Coaches and Programme Field Manager in Lusaka are recruited and trained First team kit secured - donated by University of Stirling 2011 Africa on the Ball is formed and trustees recruited Africa on the Ball Kit is secured, through CD & DVD donations Football team is registered and entered into under 17s league in Lusaka Team finish 2nd in U17s league and are promoted to amateurs league A total of 3,118 is fundraised in the UK to support activity in Zambia Football coaching programme launched in Moshi, Tanzania in partnership with Mount Kilimanjaro First Aid Community Programme Players are individually profiled and their status assessed Partnership status with Edusport Charity Registration application Recruitment of UK fundraising volunteers

12 Action Plan Field visit in Lusaka - video/photos and other evidenced gathered Launch of First aid and transferrable skills training - delivered to all team members Partnerships in the community with local schools are initiated to start delivering health & wellbeing classes and football coaching programmes Yearly health checks and HIV testing introduced for all team players 2013 Secure sponsor funding for boys team Set up income generating projects in Africa and UK (Arts & Crafts) Recruit girls team and deliver associated programmes and benefits (health & wellbeing classes, annual health checks, first aid training, etc.) Set up scholarship fund available to all players Players start delivering programs to local schools and in the community (First Aid Training, health & wellbeing, football coaching, etc.) Introduce wages for field staff 2014 Recruit & train first group of UK volunteers to deliver programs in Africa Establish women s health classes & support groups in Lusaka Kilimanjaro climb fundraiser in Partnership with Mount Kilimanjaro First Aid Community Programme 2015 Secure institutional funding (2 years after achievement of charity status) Launch Micro-loan and enterprise initiative Deliver health & wellbeing classes, football coaching, first aid training and transferrable skills programs entirely through volunteers. Programs are cascaded to community throughout the year by trained team members

13 Financial Report 2011/12 The figures below are for the period July 2011 to June 2012 Income Online Fundraising % Fundraiser events 1, % Monthly Donors % One-off donations % Merchandise Sales % Total 3, % Expenditure In Africa 2, % Fundraisers* % Admin** % Total 2, % Profit/Loss 443 *Fundraisers expenditure simply means the money re-invested in fundraising activity to generate more income. For instance this may be prizes for a quiz or posters to promote a fundraiser football tournament. **Admin expenditure includes any printing or publicity/design costs, it also includes some (limited) expenses incurred by volunteers and trustees on Africa on the Ball business. All travel to Africa is self-funded.

14 Financial Report 2011/12 Income 2011/12 Expenditure 2011/12