Keeping Children Away from Drugs with Soccer

Keeping Children Away from Drugs with Soccer Female1: It looks grim and it is. We’re in downtown Nairobi just a kilometer or so from the luxury hotels and wealthy suburbs. This is Nathory valley one of the biggest slums in the fast growing capital city. It’s a world of poverty and crime of single mothers abandoned and destitute. Children start by sniffing glue. Some young girls become prostitutes and get HIV. But we’re about to see a different side of Nathory valley. Surprises that spring from the streets. This is a girl’s football team. A local association has associations has organized thousand of girls and boys into soccer leagues. The soccer leagues have given a whole new meaning to the lives of the young boys and girls of this shanty town. About 9,000 play in the Maysa league. Behind me, Amatory united better known as the young Cinderella team that walks away with the national women’s championship cup. Ruth Mathony is 14. She’s been playing for four years now. Female2: I like playing football. There are a lot of people around smoking, taking drugs and alcohol. But those of us who come to play football don’t go along with any of that. I'm telling you, I don’t use drugs or drink alcohol. I prefer to play football. Female1: The idea isn’t only keep the kids like Ruth busy. It is also to give them a sense of teamwork. A sense of community of looking after each other. But there is even something else as well and the unlikely key is in the garbage that’s everywhere you look. The football organizes, Maysa, the amatori youth sports association insist that in return for playing football, young people like Ruth should help clear up the Rubbish. Maurice Njoroge: Kid’s actually enjoy-- you know it is really hard to believe this but the kids actually enjoy doing the community service work because they are not doing it on their own, they are doing it all together and they realize that they are doing it for their own good. And they are doing it together as a team as friends. Female1: So every weekend up to a thousand football playing kids like Ruth, did drain these ditches or clear garbage like this. Even a few years ago this combination of community service and teamwork would have been unthinkable here. Ruth is one of 10 children. Her parents are so proud of her. In an environment where women are often mistreated and abandoned it’s her status within her family and community that’s given her new hope. Maurice Njoroge: The families are now very, very proud of them particularly after they went to Norway and came back. They realize that girls have more abilities than just staying at home and washing dishes and doing the cooking and so they are becoming more sensitive to the needs of girls. Then the girls feel wanted and they feel that there is something in the family and you know when you get a praise something that they probably are not used to getting that really helps a lot in building their self confidence and self esteem, which earns them more respect then in the family and earns them more respect in the society because that they can hold their heads up high and you know be proud of themselves. Female1: Kicking a round ball it doesn’t seem like much but for now this is the seed of the change that could alter attitudes from the bottom up. Maybe one day turn around a whole community. This is some achievement for a small committed association, a model for countless other average shanty towns throughout Africa.