SHORTLIST SPOTLIGHT: SPORT FOR QUALITY EDUCATION AND EMPLOYMENT AWARD

As we continue our build-up to this years Beyond Sport Global Awards in New York on July 26th, we focus this week’s Shortlist Spotlight on how sport-based programs can improve educational attainment and employment opportunities.

This category is aligned with Sustainable Development Goal 4, Quality Education. Achieving this goal will ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all. Sport has the ability to engage marginalized groups, and is often a source of hope for young people that are not engaged in mainstream education.

Curriculum can be designed around sport to make it more engaging, improving the outlook of young learners and their understanding of how important education can be. Participation in sport can also provide life skills that are valuable in employment, such as communication, teamwork and discipline.

Sport for Quality Education and Employment Award Official Shortlist

Alive and Kicking, UK, Ghana, Zambia and Kenya

Alive and Kicking create fairly paid, ethical employment in Africa through the manufacturing and selling of sports balls. A+K operate in countries with high informal employment rates (Kenya: 77%, Ghana: 80%, Zambia: 90%), employing 155 members of staff. They provide steady wages above the national average that allow individuals to support their families, pay for education and medical bills for their children and save for their personal development. The organisation operates as a not-for-profit social enterprise. All profits from the sale of sportsballs are used to fund entrepreneurial programmes and health education in their countries of operation.

Giovanni van Bronckhorst Foundation, The Netherlands

The Giovanni Van Bronkhorst Foundation operates in regions with high illiteracy, unemployment and social exclusion. A key driver of these social problems is poor school attendance and educational performance. They use sport to support children transitioning from primary to secondary school, a crucial drop-off point in their educational trajectory. The program focuses on children who have fallen behind through learning difficulties, behavioural problems, family trauma or special educational needs. Through their fun, sports- and education-based programmes, they help children develop core life skills to overcome personal and societal barriers, and improve their educational and career prospects.

Refugee Girls and Innovation - YALLA, USA

YALLA works in elementary schools with youth from places like Liberia, Iraq, Sudan, Guatemala, El Salvador, Palestine, Afghanistan, and Mexico. Students play in a competitive and developmental soccer program, with emphasis on skill acquisition, individual responsibility to grow as a player, and teamwork. When students enter the high school program they have the confidence and skill set to pursue a college education through a resource-laden College Bound Program. The focus starts on teaching individual skills and then team dynamics. YALLA teaches students how to work hard to learn skills and this knowledge/value transfers to other parts of their lives.