Drama, Dance, Music, & Sport for Kisumu Youth

Working with partners who share our goals helps broaden the range of skill sets the Manyatta Youth Resource Center (MYRC) can bring to our community.  A recent training in Nairobi, which MYRC leaders participated in with other groups, was a catalyst for creating regular events in Kisumu where the parents of our program participants are invited to come together with their children and play together.   

Through the Sport for Peace and Development approach, games become an entry point for young people to learn life skills, build confidence, express themselves, understand one another and engage in meaningful peer-to-peer conversations.  Behind almost every child is a parent, and parents are some of the most important drivers of this journey.  A significant milestone has been the introduction of Friday Jam with Midrift Hurinet, a space where parents and children come together, interact, and share experiences beyond the usual sports activities.

Friday Jam can become more than another community gathering. It provides an opportunity for parents to unwind, reconnect with their children, and experience what happens when young people are given a safe and supportive environment to learn, play and express themselves. This has also helped address some of the concerns parents can have about allowing their children to participate in group activities. 

Sometimes, the most powerful reassurance for a parent does not come from explanations, it comes from experience.  During the Friday Jam, a child can arrive with their mother.  But instead of simply watching from the sidelines, the mother can become part of the activities.  She can actively participate, leading in the drills, and demonstrating the same energy that the children bring into the sessions. The parent no longer is simply observing what her children are doing, she is experiencing it herself.

Parent and child can learn together that every drill, every conversation and every activity can carry a deeper lesson.  A simple sporting activity can teach teamwork. A challenge can teach resilience. A disagreement can create an opportunity to learn conflict resolution. A leadership drill can build confidence. And when people work together toward one goal, they begin to understand the importance of unity.

The Friday Jam demonstrates what is possible when partnerships come together around a common purpose.  Through the partnership of Manyatta Youth Resource Centre (MYRC), MidRift Hurinet, SOS Children’s Villages Kenya, SOS Denmark and GAME DK, under the Sport for Peace and Development initiative, sport is being used to create spaces where people of all ages and their communities can learn, listen and build relationships.

As Kenya looks ahead to the 2027 General Election, conversations around peaceful coexistence become increasingly important.  We can choose to see one another first as human beings, as neighbors, as friends, as brothers and sisters.  We can be A Community That Chooses Peace.  The journey continues.  And sometimes, all it takes to begin is a game, a conversation, and a parent who decides to join in with their child.

Founded in 2009, the Manyatta Youth Resource Center, principally funded by Equip Manyatta, emerged during one of Kenya’s most difficult periods.  Following the 2007 post-election violence that shook communities across the country, a group of local leaders sought to create an initiative that would promote peace, unity, and coexistence among young people in the area.  It has developed into a community institution.  Thank you for the contributions that have allowed us to learn and teach how to work together.  And thank you for whatever you can contribute to continue that work today.