Zimbabwe: Using Soccer to Fight HIV
A local NGO harnesses the power of sport
to engage children in learning about
HIV
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Fortune,
an orphan herself, now helps
other children learn about
HIV and provides the emotional
support they need to deal
with growing up as part of
a dedicated team who help
run the Grassroots soccer
program.
Photo Credit: Heather Quinn.
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When Fortune's mother died, Fortune says
that she was too young—at age six—to
understand the loss. When she lost her
father to AIDS six years later and had
to live with her uncle, she felt the
loneliness that goes along with not having
parents. She received scholarships to
allow her to complete her secondary education
when her uncle wasn't able to pay for
her fees. Once she graduated, Fortune
discovered Grassroots Soccer.
Grassroots Soccer is an innovative organization
that uses the power of soccer as an entry
point to achieve its main objective of
providing rigorous health education,
focusing on HIV and AIDS. The program
started in Zimbabwe in 2003 and reaches
youth aged 11-18. Led by coaches, in
addition to engaging students in critical
learning about HIV prevention, the program
provides psychosocial support and the
opportunity for kids to form trusting
relationships with responsible adults
who are role models. The role model component
is especially important because many
of the kids in the program don't have
positive role models at home. The program
consists of 14 sport modules that use
soccer and games to engage students in
fun ways of understanding important information
about HIV and health issues.
A
grant from the USAID-supported Children
First project has allowed a local NGO
to provide health education and psychosocial
support through sport programming to
nearly 3000 students.
When Fortune heard about Grassroots, she
was too old to be a participant, but
wanted to be a part of the organization
and offered to be a volunteer facilitator.
After standing out as a committed and
passionate volunteer, she went on to
intern at the head office. She says that
she wanted to be involved because "I
felt that as an orphan, I could help
other children like me, just by sharing
what I've been through."
While her father was sick, no one explained
to Fortune about HIV or helped her in
the grieving process after his death.
Years later, she silently suffered with
the shame of losing a parent to AIDS
when she discovered her father's death
certificate. She now says, "If I
had participated in the Grassroots Soccer
program when I was younger I think I
would have dealt with my father's situation
in a different way… If I knew
then what I know now about HIV I might
have understood what was going on."
In addition to being an enjoyable way
for kids to learn and internalize important
information, the Grassroots approach
of using fun and games achieves results.
In a 2007 evaluation, it was found that
children who went through the program
had significantly reduced incidences
of multiple sex partners compared to
children who did not participate.
In addition to providing a small grant,
Children First, with funding from USAID,
has worked closely with Grassroots Soccer
to improve its programming and financial
management capabilities. Because of this,
Grassroots Soccer was able to expand
its program to reach 3000 children in
Bulawayo schools this year and train
Fortune in the skills necessary to deliver
the program. "I can relate to the
kids, so I can help them," she says.
Having lost both her parents, Fortune
understands the stigma and shame that
goes along with being an orphan but says
that "In the classroom and on the
street there is judgement, but on the
field there is no judgment. It's about
being a team." The Grassroots Soccer
program gives children like Fortune the
chance to grow up to be healthy, well
adjusted, and supported teenagers and
adults who can go on to help others in
need, as Fortune has.
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