FIFA’S FOOTBALL FOR HOPE CENTRE KICK-STARTS IN CAPE COAST




Oguaa Football for Hope Centre

By Kirsty Telfer (Projects Abroad)

Despite the disappointing performance of the Black Stars at the recent Africa Cup of Nations, the youth of Ghana are still passionate about their love for football.

The Oguaa Football for Hope Centre in Cape Coast is paving the way for the stars of the future. Inspired by FIFA, who collaborated with Play Soccer International/Ghana to develop and build the facility, the centre uses football to reach out to the most destitute children to help aid their development and build on their skills for a positive future.

Play Soccer Ghana launched in 2001 as the Play Soccer International Network's first pilot program and has expanded from a single site with 100 children to 896 children currently registered at twelve sites in four regions across the country.

Building on the legacy of the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa, FIFA promised to develop and help finance 20 football for hope centres in 15 countries in Africa, including 5 in South Africa. Working with non-government organisation (NGO) Play Soccer International, which is affiliated with Play Soccer organisations in 6 African countries, FIFA maintained they had a responsibility to aid development on the continent after the World Cup.

They therefore, along with grassroots organisations in the countries involved, set about building football-playing facilities to specifically benefit underprivileged children and those living in the most deprived communities.

Mr Abdul Wahab Musah (Manager, Oguaa Football for Hope Centre)

Mr Abdul Wahab Musah, Manager of the Oguaa Football for Hope Centre, who is also affiliated with Play Soccer Ghana, said sports development plays an essential role in assisting those children most in need of an education and gives the added benefit of playing football.

The centre runs on a 48-week curriculum and children aged 4-15 are invited to attend. The programme runs after school and every week a different skill is taught using football to engage, inspire and educate the children.

They are taught how to avoid malaria, are educated on the prevention of HIV/AIDS, issues regarding sanitation and hygiene and health related topics. Children are also taught essential leadership and social skills, which in turn helps to build self-confidence and a feeling of worth.

Mr Musah acknowledges the importance of an education alongside sport, and so the facility has a classroom where children do around 90 minutes of homework before playing football. He said the children are taught to understand that the career of a footballer is limited, and even those who make it to an international level need to have a profession and/or skill to use after their football career is over.

Play Soccer Ghana works in four regions, the Ashanti, Accra, Eastern Region and the Central Region.

Mr Musah said the success of Play Soccer Ghana was highlighted in the number of children who had turned up to register for the programme in the past. Previously limits had been placed on the number of children admitted due to a lack of funding.

He said it was estimated that over 500 children would turn up to register for the upcoming programme and he was confident that he would be able to accommodate everyone. Despite this, all children are means tested and interviewed before being offered a place on the programme. Having to decide which children do more deserve is by no means as easy task but has to be done due to such high demands.

One of the biggest challenges facing the children is transportation to the venue. Many children are willing to walk long distances to the centre, underlining the essential role the centre is playing in the lives of those children most in need.

The Oguaa Football for Hope Centre provides volunteer teachers to help children with homework before they play football. Other facilities at the centre include a computer lab, which is also open to high school students.

FIFA is sponsoring the centre for three years, with funding due to run out in 2013. They gave 50 percent of funds and the rest was provided by Play Soccer Ghana. Mr Musah said he believes this helps to sustain the programme and is confident that once the FIFA sponsorship ends, funds will be easily raised in and around the local communities.

However, he admitted that at the moment the Oguaa Football for Hope Centre receives no support from the government, although the Cape Coast district assembly is currently involved.

Another establishment run in conjunction with Play Soccer Ghana and at the Oguaa Football, for Hope Centre is Street Link; an organisation that targets adolescents aged 16-23.

Mr Musah said this is a vulnerable group most often neglected by society. He pointed out that Cape Coast has some of the best secondary schools in the country but current figures from the District Assembly show that it is a struggle to get even 30 percent of Cape Coast youth into good secondary schools.

Street League aims to get young people back into school or to provide them with essential skills to aid them in securing employment.

It works with young people who love football and who previously believed they could drop back from school in order to devote all their time to playing football.

Street League works with the young people to provide them with the opportunity to play football while also pursuing an education and/or a vocation.

Presently, 120 young people are involved in Street League, which runs on a 3-semester programme. The 1^st semester is concerned with identifying the needs of those involved, and like the Oguaa Football for Hope programme; all participants are interviewed and needs tested. During the 2^nd semester, external persons are invited to talk to the young people, educating them on life skills, development and opportunities for their future. Finally, the 3^rd semester is concerned with getting the young people back into school or into a vocation/profession of their choice and skill level.

Mr Musah said the programme, currently in its seventh month, was so far proving to be very successful. Some young people have been trained as security guards, receptionists, and others have successful made the transition back to secondary school.

Street League’s football matches have boys and girls playing together and without a referee. In this respect, the players have to work together to decide when it’s a foul etc. and only when an argument is unresolved does an external person step in to help.

A football team from the Cape Coast School for the Deaf play with those from Street League. This in turn helps to promote awareness of disability and gives the youth an opportunity to work on their communication skills.

There is currently no Play Soccer Ghana scheme in the Northern Region, although Mr Musah said he hopes this will change in the near future.

The FIFA President, Sepp Blatter, launched the first centre 2 years ago in South Africa.

As well as working in Ghana and South Africa, Play Soccer also has centres in Senegal, Cameroon, Malawi and Zambia.

One student benefiting from Street League is Louisa Baaba Cornelious. A promising footballer, Miss Cornelious left her job as a Nursery Teacher in order to devote more time to playing football. She was selected for the Street Link programme and now, as well as playing in their league games, is currently studying for a Bachelor of Education (B.Ed.) in Psychology at the University of Cape Coast.

Miss Cornelious also works as an intern to the centre, educating the children in the Play Soccer Ghana programme about the importance of learning as well as playing football. She admitted that the Street Link programme had offered her a tremendous opportunity and she realised the importance of an education alongside a career in football. She said her ambition was to play football for an international team, with FIFA agents occasionally coming to observe matches at the Oguaa Football for Hope Centre, remains hopeful about her future as an international football star.

A sign of the growing recognition and support within Ghana for Play Soccer Ghana’s core program is the support of renowned former captain of Ghana's National Team, Tony Baffoe, who recently agreed to become a "Goodwill Ambassador" for Play Soccer Ghana.

The Oguaa Football for Hope Centre reaches out, makes a difference to the lives of people like Miss Cornelious, and is committed to aiding the development of the youth of Ghana through a love for football.



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