Kick for Trade initiative with the UEFA Foundation for Children uses football skills to teach life skills to young people starting out in life
Young people in The Gambia who are learning life skills by learning football skills feature in a short video released by the International Trade Centre to mark the International Day of Sport for Development and Peace on 6 April 2020.
The youngsters are participants in Kick for Trade, a project backed by the UEFA Foundation for Children, which aims to boost the employability and entrepreneurship skills of young people in West Africa.
‘In July 2019, UEFA Foundation for Children Secretary General, Urs Kluser and ITC Executive Director Arancha González announced the development of a new initiative – Kick for Trade – that embraces football to ensure greater inclusive development and boost youth employment,’ David Cordobés, manager of ITC’s Youth and Trade Programme, said. ‘The first countries of this new initiative to be piloted are Guinea and The Gambia.
Following the agreement, representatives of the UEFA Foundation and its implementing partners, Street Football World and Kick4life, went on exploratory missions to both countries. They engaged local stakeholders to map out concrete activities and co-design an employability and entrepreneurship curriculum for young people.
‘The project is all about developing life skills for employability and entrepreneurship through football-based exercises, strengthening the confidence of the youth we are working with,’ said Peter Braun of Street Football World.
Paul Western, of Kick4Life, said that football skills like teamwork and communication were transferable skills that benefit young people starting out in life.
The short video was made in partnership with Tekki Fii, a skills and entrepreneurship initiative implemented by ITC’s Gambia Youth Employment Project.
‘More will happen in the coming months, but this video shows the level of engagement of our partners and the fact that ITC and the UEFA foundation stand ready to be active agents in the area of sport for development and peace,’ Mr. Kluser said.
The United Nations General Assembly declared 6 April as the International Day of Sport for Development and Peace in 2013.
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