Empower East African Refugee Youth in Uganda

With year-round programs, activities, and events, there is never a dull moment at our Soccer Without Borders (SWB) Uganda hub. Due to the hard work and dedication of the SWB Uganda staff and volunteers, the hub continues to grow, thrive, and make significant impacts in the lives of Kampala’s refugee youth, their families, and the local community as a whole. While the previous months have produced far more inspirational moments than could possibly be listed here, we would like to leave you with a few of our favorite highlights:

Soccer Without Borders has a New Website

In December, we launched a brand new, fully redesigned website. A website redesign is much more than a new look; it's a process of capturing how we have made an impact so far, refining how our programs relate to one another, elevating who brings our mission to life and how, and drawing a through line from our programs, projects, and process to our vision for a more inclusive and equitable world, where all youth reach their inherent potential.

We invite you to explore how Soccer Without Borders is creating belonging through sports-based youth development, how we build healing-centered programs for refugee and newcomer youth, and how we are using the global game to advance gender equity. 

While visiting the new website, don’t forget to take a look at the SWB Uganda hub page in order to learn even more about our Kampala-based hub and the people who work tirelessly to serve SWB participants through the power of soccer, education, and community.

Language, Literacy, and Leadership Activities

Education stands as one of three core pillars of SWB programming. Serving more than 4,000 newcomer youth annually, we recognize the vital role that language plays in the pursuit of inclusion, growth, and personal success. There are few better examples of this pillar in action than the Refugee Youth Center at SWB Uganda, a specifically-designed program providing language development opportunities for local refugee and newcomer youth. In addition to soccer, community building, and other activities, the Youth Center, based in Uganda’s Capital of Kampala, offers free-of-cost access to educational activities and programs to over 500 youth each year. 

For a deep-dive into these language, literacy, and leadership programs, check out this blog written by SWB Uganda’s very own Jules Mayele.

Parent Engagement Workshop

In November, SWB Uganda held a Parent Engagement activity at our Youth Center. The event brought together more than 50 parents and guardians for this important workshop which focused on the importance of child safeguarding and sought to raise awareness of the rights of young people. 

As a youth development organization, safeguarding is a critical element of our work and is a key responsibility of each and every coach and staff member. Having this conversation with our SWB parents and guardians was particularly important, ensuring that everyone in the community is aware of the preventative and direct actions needed to promote the well-being of our participants as well as children in the Kampala community.

Links:

• SWB Uganda's New Webpage
• SWB Uganda Facebook Page

Under the leadership of newly appointed Soccer Without Borders (SWB) Uganda Director, Jeremiah Lukeka, our Kampala, Uganda program continues to grow, thrive, and make positive impacts in the lives of refugee youth, their families, and the local community as a whole. Soccer, education, and community has continued to be the cornerstones of the work being done on the ground in Kampala and here are some highlights from the last several months of programming:

Soccer: The 5th Kampala Girls League 

The fifth edition of the Kampala Girls League kicked off in late August. The league is designed to be a space where girls, both beginners and experienced players alike, have the opportunity to participate in soccer matches, build their skills, grow together as teammates, increase their self-confidence, and much more. This edition of the league features 26 teams divided amongst two divisions. Teams such as Sparta, Warriors, and Dolphins took the field with joy, excitement, passion, and a love for the game. 

Education: The Launch of the SWB Uganda Community Library

In August, the Soccer Without Borders Community Library officially opened at our Kampala Youth Center. In collaboration with local organizations the Africa Library Project and Enjuba Uganda, the library opened to the community with a kick-off celebration featuring over 50 parents and guardians and over 150 youth participants in attendance. With over 1300 fiction and nonfiction books, the space has already proven to be an incredibly beneficial addition to SWB Uganda’s Refugee Youth Literacy Classes and our work to provide local newcomers with the educational and language skills necessary for personal growth and success.  

Community: Preparing for the Return of the Uganda Youth Festival 

After a three year hiatus brought about by the Covid-19 pandemic, the staff team at SWB Uganda is extremely excited to begin preparations for the return of the upcoming Youth Festival. The Youth Festival is the signature event of the Uganda program’s calendar and includes five days of face painting, team building, dancing, football, food, and fun for 500+ refugee and Ugandan youth in our community. As the annual school year starts in early February, the Festival also serves as a critically important annual kick-off and recruitment event for our program. Momentum from this popular event feeds into the new year of programming at SWB, and new Ugandan School year in Nsambya.

World Refugee Day 2022: 

June 20th was World Refugee Day, a day recognized by the United Nations to reflect upon, remember, and lift up refugees and displaced people globally. This year, the UNHCR has projected that the total number of displaced people around the world has exceeded 100 million. Because of these sobering numbers, SWB decided to lift up the voice of our refugee youth participants with a special feature about SWB Uganda participant Meschack. "As a refugee, [soccer] helps me know that I am part of something in the community,” says Meschack. “I get to learn English so that I can communicate with people surrounding me. I play football and increase my skills and also make new friends." 

Now residing and thriving in Uganda, Meschack and his family were forced to flee the Democratic Republic of Congo in search of safety and security. Their story is full of resilience, bravery, hope, and is sure to inspire. Read more about their journey here. 

Links:

• SWB Uganda Facebook Page