Football may not be the first sport that springs to mind when we think of India, but Homeless World Cup national partners Slum Soccer have been using football as a tool of engagement with homeless and marginalised young people for over a decade now and have become established as a leading figure in the Sport and Development field in India. "What started as simple weekend sessions in 2001, reaching out to 10 children, using football as a tool for social improvement and empowerment has bloomed into fully fledged football coaching camps, educational and healthcare workshops and societal development programmes, bringing a positive influence to the lives of nearly 70,000 men, women and children in over 63 districts all around the country." (Slum Soccer Annual Report 2011-12).
Slum Soccer and Homelessness in India
The second most populous nation in the world, India has a population of well over a billion people. 170 million people live on the streets and 260 million people (a group almost equivalent in size to the entire population of the USA) live on less than a dollar a day.
Slum Soccer engages homeless and marginalised people through football, providing them with not just the physical, social and psychological benefits of playing a sport, but with access to health and hygiene care and information.
Taking part in regular football sessions provides a simple framework for homeless people to develop a new way of life, with structures and goals - a platform for a better future.
When a homeless person gets involved in football they communicate and build relationships with others; they become teammates, learning to trust and share; they have a responsibility to attend training sessions and games, to be on time and prepared to participate. They feel part of something.
Here an interview I had done in July 2011 with Abhijeet Barse from Slum Soccer in Berlin, Germany.
Tidak ada komentar:
Posting Komentar