After the successful completion of this year’s Manchester for Kibera tournament, there is no rest for the Kibera Mpira Mtaani committee as they move straight in to preparations for an informal schools tournament. Thanks to a donation from a Vision Africa supporter, the funds are available for a one week football tournament that will kick off on the 8th October.
There are currently around 75 informal schools in Kibera. These schools are often set up by local churches, NGOs (Non Government Organisation) or community members to cater for children whose parents can’t afford to send them to a government school. With only 4 government schools within reasonable walking distance of Kibera, the majority of children attend informal schools which received no funding from the government. Although primary education in government schools is free, there is still the cost of uniforms, stationery and transport to consider. Another factor is that my of the informal schools attract feeding programmes from NGOs so parents can guarantee that their child eats at least once a day.
Kibera Mpira Mtaani chairman Vincent Kegode explained the importance of holding a tournament for informal schools in Kibera. “The government works alone and when it organises music, drama and sports festivals they are only for government schools, informal schools are not included. These extra -curricular activities give children more confidence and an opportunity to display their talents. We can also use this opportunity to pass on messages about important issues.”
For the October tournament, Kibera Mpira Mtaani will partner with two organisations which will counsel and mentor the children taking part in the event. SAPTA (Support for Addiction, Prevention and Treatment in Africa Centre) will provide education about the dangers of drugs and MSF (Medicines Sans Frontieres) will use the opportunity to discuss HIV/AIDS, reproductive health and other health related issues. These organisations will then be free to work directly with the schools and reach a larger number of children.
The last informal schools tournament that was held was limited to 20 teams, this time round 40 teams will compete. These will be made up of 20 girls teams and 20 boys teams from the 13 villages in Kibera. Chairman of the Kibera informal schools, Charles Ochieng, will work with the Kibera Mpira Mtaani committee and teachers from a number of schools to determine how the teams will be selected. There will be an age limit of 14 years to ensure safety for all players and as well as trophies they will be competing for stationery supplies and individual awards of school uniforms.
Our thanks go to the donor who made this tournament possible and we look forward to posting an update to show the highlights from the tournament in October. If you would like more information about Kibera Mpira Mtaani or to support their work, please use our contact form to get in touch.