Social Development

HERE’S HOW YOU CAN GIVE BACK

Katja Hamilton

I was driving past Paradise Road in Claremont and spotted Daniel Mhundra standing on the side of the road, where he stands day in and day out.

He is one among many vendors trying to sell his works of art to drivers passing by, who perchance may stop at a red traffic light long enough to notice his paintings.

That driver was me one day, and Daniel’s artwork literally stopped me in my tracks.

I had bought one of Daniel’s artworks before – cleverly crafted township scenes set against a piece of old chipboard and the backdrop of Table Mountain – a mixed medium of oil paint interspersed with cut outs from Coca Cola cans; those of tin cans representing the corrugated iron roofs of shacks – homes to thousands upon thousands of poverty stricken South Africans.

This time his new work of art, in much the same style had a different focal point: Cape Town Stadium, its saddleback ridge in tin was set in the midst of a township scene bordered by a tropical beach setting at the foot of Table Mountain.

This work of art had me thinking: It spoke volumes and communicated something I hadn’t up until that point been able to.

On closer inspection (see photo) you’ll see there is no representation of the affluent suburbs that border the stadium, namely Green Point and Sea Point, nor any of the latest developments in the city: the building of roads, bridges hotels and new bus system. That the stadium in the artwork finds itself surrounded by a township instead mirrors the sharp contrast and the great divide between the rich and the poor in Cape Town, and begs the question: How inclusive has the World Cup been of the poorest of the poor or has it only served the handful of rich people in Cape Town? How, after the World Cup will the basic needs of those living in the townships have been met? How visible and aware is the world of those in Cape Town and South Africa who live in poverty?

With the World Cup upon us has our government allowed as much of the spotlight to fall on the dire needs of the poorest of the poor?

Perhaps it has. I am very happy that globally, FIFA has backed 1Goal. Started in 2000, it has seen 164 governments including South Africa come together to create the Education for All Goals initiative with the aim of ending poverty. The initiative, backed by U2′s Bono and Sir Bob Geldof, is pressing governments for an extra $7 billion to achieve
its target.

Locally, FIFA has built a Football for Hope Centre in Khayelitsha, which provides education and public-health services, while the Dreamfields Project, initiated by John Perlman has brought soccer fields and equipment, as well as business skills and new social partnerships to disadvantaged communties across South Africa. And who could forget Sporting Chance, who in partnership with FIFA World Cup partner, KIA Motors supported street soccer tournaments in all nine provinces, and are giving 4000 underprivileged children the chance of a lifetime: to see a 2010 World Cup Soccer match live in one South Africa’s premier stadiums?

These are but some of the projects I can think of that have, in the name of World Cup Soccer, tried to uplift the living standards of the poor in South Africa. However, whether our government has itself done enough to alleviate poverty in the townships is opening up a huge can of worms, and there isn’t space for that debate here – only suffice it to say my personal point of view is that it has not – one only has to read about how residents in Khayelitsha are not even able to get simple public toilets installed – to see this.

But within our personal capacity, and as ambassadors of our country, let’s not forget to contribute and to also give our tourists the opportunity to give back to the social and economic upliftment of our country, to make a difference. Yes, with the World Cup here we are presenting the best of Cape Town to our visitors: our amazing beaches and mountains, great restaurants, fantastic shopping malls and great Safari trips and I’m all for that. Hospitality is in fact what we’re known for, and I guarantee you that tourists in Cape Town are already having a ball here. But I’m hoping this won’t misrepresent our country, and leave tourists thinking we’re all living the high life. We’re not.

The very danger of this could have tourists redirecting their financial aid to what they perceive to be poorer countries – and this could cost us dearly in the long run. Let’s rather create an air of transparency, and raise awareness of our poverty, so that more people from around the world can have the opportunity to make a real difference to those people in need here – those like Daniel.

If we’re transparent about the needs of locals living in townships, it can raise awareness of their socio-economic needs and do much to attract the very aid they so desperately need – education, housing, support for mothers and counselling services, to name a few.

And it’s not only those living in townships who need help. There are many homeless and displaced people. It’s not uncommon to see people sleeping on pavements along the main road. You only have to drive down Wynberg Main Road in Cape Town to see this.

Let’s promote responsible tourism.

It could be debated that, through FIFA’s work in South Africa, that awareness of the poverty here has already been raised, and that there are many tourists who know this already and really do want to help. All that remains to be communicated is how they can help.

Either way, you as a South African can be their first point of contact and can bring this discussion to the table. Let your visitors know that should they wish to donate money, food, clothing, or their time and skills, that here is a list of established organisations that they can contribute to.

Straatwerk
runs programmes including employment projects for men and women.
021 423 2464

The Haven
has programmes for adults and provides food, clothing and shelter.
021 461 7830

The Homestead
runs programmes for boys and provides food, clothing and shelter.
021 461 7470

Ons Plek
runs programmes including food, clothing and shelter for girls.
021 465 4829

Home of Hope
provides programmes and after-hours’ social work for children
086 010 9089

The Big Issue
a job creation and development organisation that publishes a general interest magazine sold by a vendor force of unemployed, homeless and socially excluded adults. This is backed-up by a social-development programme of vendor support, vocational, life and business skills training and guidance counselling, which empowers vendors to transition into the formal job sector and even to start small businesses of their own.
021 461 6690

The Carpenters Shop
provides rehabilitation services and skills training for adults.
021 461 5508

. To order one of Daniel’s paintings call 073 3051197. His prices range from R200 to R250, although I personally would offer him a little bit more.

* Photo: Daniel Mhundra shows his World Cup painting

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TOWNSHIP TEAMS PREPARE FOR ALL-OUT BATTLE

Sporting Chance, in partnership with FIFA World Cup partner, KIA Motors will be giving 4000 underprivileged children the chance of a lifetime: to see a 2010 World Cup Soccer match live in one South Africa’s premier stadiums.
Katja Hamilton reports.

…………………

Soccer in the townships is about to hot up as the Kia Street Soccer League prepares to launch this week (Friday, April 9).

The first of its kind in South Africa, the tournament will see under-13 teams from football clubs around the country competing in five-a-side round robin games in their townships with streets closed off and turned into makeshift soccer pitches.

There will be a minimum of two girls a side and teams will be arranged in order of street names, with teams pitted against one another in an all-out battle for the Kia Street Soccer League trophy.

“Eventually, you will have all the roads participating, so we’ll close down all the roads on a Saturday night in the townships throughout South Africa for our children to play soccer ,” says Managing Director of Sporting Chance, Brad Bing.

In total there will be 19 teams that will each play 5 matches.

The four regions earmarked for the event are Cape Town, Durban, Johannesburg and Pretoria. The townships that will participate are Cape Town’s Langa, Nyanga, Gugulethu, Khayelitsha, Mitchells Plain and Athlone; Durban’s Macasser, KwaMashu, Phoenix, Chatsworth and Umlazi; Pretoria’s Shoshone Vubu, Atteridgeville and Gauteng’s Soweto, Alexandra, Orange Farm and Riverlea.

Already PSL teams such as Ajax and Orlando Pirates have been training 140 coaches providing them with expert insight into coaching methods, etiquette and drills and explaining the KIA Street Soccer rules and their responsibilities. They in turn have been coaching the children for the Kia Soccer League.

“The kids are practising on the streets now, the competitiveness and the rivalry is incredible, we’ve got an abundance of talent in this country,” said Bing.

He said the PSL clubs would be identifying this talent and recruiting children for their youth academies. This was one of the most essential legacies that the 2010 World Soccer World Cup could leave behind for South Africa’s children, he said.

“The infrastructural legacy of the stadia, the buildings and the surrounding areas are absolutely exquisite, but what are we leaving behind for the children of South Africa besides an infrastructural legacy? How are we educating them about where they are going with their life?”

To this end, Brad said his aim was not only to give underprivileged children access to the game of soccer, but to provide them with the lifeskills that would enable them to make a success of their lives.

“Our community coaches and leaders will encourage them to maintain an interest in “after school activities” in order to alleviate any inclination towards a life of petty crime, gangsterism, alcohol and drug abuse. We’re also encouraging parents to support their children, which is one of the problems we’ve got in SA is that parents don’t support their kids enough.”

This initiative has been accompanied by the rollout of an education programme at schools around the country. In partnership with the National Department of Health, facilitators have been providing “edutainment” at schools with skits and talks focusing on three core areas: personal hygiene, the importance of being physically active and good nutrition. The talks are accompanied by handouts of stationery, health and hygiene products such as soap, a facecloth, toothbrush, toothpaste, and a soccer ball sponsored by Let’s Play.

“At the end of the Kia Street Soccer League everyone’s a winner,” says Bing.

The cherry on the top: each child will get a free ticket to watch a World Cup soccer match at one of South Africa’s premier stadiums.

In total there are 4000 tickets.

“The children will be collected from their homes and chaperoned. En-route to and from the match they will be fed by Food Zone a supermarket chain with stores as far afield as Namibia and Botswana,” says Bing

The tournament kicks off this Friday, April 9 with an official launch event in Gauteng with the trophy handover set for Friday, April 16 in Gauteng.
Watch out for coverage of the matches on Supersport and ETV.

Journalists wanting to go into the townships to cover specific matches are advised to choose an area they’d like to report in and to get in contact with a team facilitator who’ll be overseeing the matches in their area of preference.

For inquiries contact Sporting Chance General Manager, Natalie Pollock on 021 683 7299.

OASIS IN THE WASTELAND

Katja Hamilton 

The blistering heat beats down on the scorched dry earth – a dry, cracked and worn foundation for row upon row of shacks. Here the land, thirsty for water and green trees, sports tin-roofed barber shops, beauty salons and spazas while vegetable vendors trade from the back of bakkies and children play barefoot with old tin cans in its bowels.

Here in Harare, Khayelitsha, daily living is a struggle.

Staring at the township through the tinted windows of a luxurious air-conditioned mini-bus I am half perched on the edge of my seat, minutes from reaching a media press conference. The tour guide is addressing the international journalists in the bus explaining how the open-air meat sales work as we pass a smoke-filled market.

Suddenly the bus comes to a halt at a four-way stop. Four boys jump out in front of it armed with buckets of soapy water and window cleaners. As the boys lunge furiously at its windscreen, I hear an explosion of laughter – the journalist sitting next to me is cracking up.

The driver ignores the boys, and continues to wind the bus past more shacks and soon we stop in front of a sand-coloured building. Police line the roads, they’ve been expecting us. Their eyes scan the horizon all the while as they wait for the dignitaries to arrive: FIFA President Joseph S. Blatter, Western Cape Premier Helen Zille, 2010 FIFA World Cup Organising Committee South Africa (OC) CEO Danny Jordaan, South African Football Association President Kirsten Nematandani and Executive Mayor of the City of Cape Town Dan Plato. Among the expected special guests are: Football for Hope ambassador Dr Gabriele Princess Inaara the Begum Aga Khan and former Bafana Bafana captain Lucas Radebe.

We’re escorted to our seats in the grandstand of a spanking new football field with a super-green astroturf. One of the British reporters in our entourage is moaning incessantly. “There’s no way she’s going to be sitting in the direct sun,” she pipes creating a ruckus among a handful of other media who’re arguing with the usher to be seated in the VIP section.

The day is December 5, and this is the opening of the Football for Hope Centre – the first of 20 planned for Africa.

“Children need our support, guidance and access to opportunities. These things haven’t been available here up until now, but this centre aims to nurture our young people so that they can take control of their lives and come into their full potential,” said Plato later addressing an enthusiastic crowd.

The Football for Hope Centre provides education and public-health services to Khayelitsha, particularly its young people, and creates a vibrant and sustainable development hub in the community. It is managed by Grassroot Soccer – a South African based, non-profit organisation that uses football to educate young people about HIV and AIDS and empowers them with the knowledge to live HIV-free.

Currently Grassroot Soccer aims to deliver a two-hour programme, three times a week, to 80-100 children. In each session, football games and drills are combined with specifically designed exercises to help young people understand and deal with HIV and AIDS. In the centre’s classrooms, testing clinics are held and children are encouraged to find out their HIV status in a safe, supportive environment.

Grassroot Soccer also trains local rolemodels to deliver their interactive, football-themed behavior development curriculum to young people, who in turn will become peer educators within their own community.

“This is a great day for Africa and a historical moment as 2010 Fifa World Cup is already leaving its legacy in South Africa,” said Blatter. “We are leaving our mark on the socio-cultural footprint of South Africa, so that not only people living in the big cities can benefit from the World Cup, but those at grassroots level too.”

After a plaque unveiling and ribbon-cutting, an on-field demonstration of the Grassroot Soccer ‘Skillz’ activity “Risk Field,” led by ‘Skillz’ coaches, brought to life how soccer can be used to teach kids about the most dangerous behaviors that lead to HIV transmission. Even Radebe got in on the action for the enthralled audience.

Leaving the grandstand I search for a spaza, and come across one. I buy the last mango-flavoured Jive left in the store. Some journalists are standing around the spaza eating their crisps, others are already in the air-conditioned bus waiting to go back to Cape Town. One journalist is on his cellphone receiving his next brief.

Just then a woman steps out of the corrugated four walls of her shack, standing precariously on the border of the football centre’s fence; my eyes are drawn to the dog-eared notice on the pole in front of her home – it is advertising abortion services in the neighbourhood.

In the thick of things, The Football for Hope Centre has kicked off in the nick of time.

. Check out http://www.grassrootsoccer.org

For photos go to:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=154525&id=524731206&saved#/album.php?aid=154010&id=524731206

or

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=154525&id=524731206&saved#/album.php?aid=154525&id=524731206

REALISING BIG DREAMS ON FOOTBALL FIELDS

Katja Hamilton

The Dreamfields Project, brainchild of journalist John Perlman, aims to use the excitement generated by the 2010 FIFA World Cup to bring soccer fields and equipment – as well as business skills and new social partnerships – to disadvantaged communities across South Africa.

“Sport can make young people more positive about their environment and themselves, and less vulnerable to crime and abuse,” he says.

The project, which has attracted heavyweight corporate backing from Old Mutual and BHP Billiton – who have each put in R6.5 million – raises money to upgrade existing soccer fields in townships and rural areas.

Two fields are ready in Venda, Limpopo province, and two in Gopane in the North West Province. BHP Billiton has built a grass field for the Madlazini community in Richards Bay in KwaZulu Natal, and two fields have been started in the Mpumalanga community of Driekoppies.

The organization also aims to supply communities with DreamBags, containing three footballs and 15 full sets of kit – shorts, shirts and socks, boots and shinpads. Groups that donate DreamBags are encouraged to deliver them personally. Each DreamBag costs R6 000.

“But any contribution helps – R40 buys a new soccer ball, R150 a pair of boots and R2 200 gets a school a full set of kit,” says Perlman.

John also launched DreamEvents with Old Mutual and BHP Billiton, which encourages teams to meet and play. Football tournaments were held in Hout Bay, Gugulethu and Kensington last year. The most recent DreamEvent hosted 120 children in villages close to the Kruger National Park and formed part of the Wild About Soccer project. A joint initiative between Dreamfields and South African National Parks (SANParks), Wild About Soccer teaches children about nature conservation.

“Conservation is a critical issue and we need to use whatever opportunity we can to raise awareness about this, to excite our kids about the environment,” says Xolile Caga, Group Transformation Manager at Edcon. “Using Dreamfields and soccer for this is a great idea.”

As an add-on, John has also launched a separate initiative DreamFields, which looks at fixing old fields.

A knowledgeable soccer lover, Perlman once formed an excellent commentary team with Mark Gleeson, covering the sport on television for the SA Broadcasting Corporation. His experiences include covering the European Championships, the African Nations Cup and the World Cup.

It was Perlman’s love for the game that inspired him to come up with the idea for the DreamFields project.

“We believe everything we do has potential stretch, the inherent possibility for bettering our communities, and all future DreamEvents will follow this model,” Perlman said.

“We work with soccer, yes, but soccer in South Africa is more than just a game. It is a life force, and that life force can spread benefits that go well beyond the four sides of the pitch.”

Call 011 833 1050, visit dreamfieldsproject.org or email johnperlman@dreamfieldsproject.org
 

BEATING POVERTY A GLOBAL GOAL

Katja Hamilton

Mark Fish will be signing up with the 2010 FIFA World Cup 1GOAL: Education for All campaign, which is launching today.

1Goal is a global team that voices its wishes to world leaders to keep their promise of giving everyone an education by 2015.

Mark will be among a group of leading football players and world leaders including President Jacob Zuma , who will join FIFA President Sepp Blatter via satellite to announce their support for the campaign. Together they will pledge for the 2010 FIFA World Cup to leave a lasting legacy of education in Africa and the rest of the world.

On video link to Arsenal’s Emirates Stadium in London will be UN Secretary, Ban Ki-moon; Spanish Prime Minister, Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero; Australian Prime Minister, Kevin Rudd and President of Ghana, Atta Mills.

At the stadium will be British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, Queen Rania of Jordan and football personalities such as Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger and Portsmouth’s South Africa defender Aaron Mokoena.

“The World Cup focuses global attention unlike any other tournament and next year’s - the first ever held on African soil - provides an unprecedented opportunity to leave a lasting legacy,” Brown said in a statement ahead of the event.

In particular, 1Goal is pressing governments for an extra $7 billion to achieve its target.

1Goal started in 2000, when 164 governments came together to create the Education for All Goals initiative with the aim of ending poverty. The initiative  is backed by U2′s Bono and Sir Bob Geldof.

The live webcast will be on www.join1goal.org where you can also sign up (no donations required). Also go to  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-E5YSn1piYk