Breakthrough Sports Academy

Refugee Camp Projects (Mayukwayukwa, Nangweshi and Maheba)

Since 2005 BCSA and Grassroot Soccer have been working in the refugee camps of Mayukwa-yukwa, Nangweshi and Maheba and have set up a continuous football league and HIV education program for girls’ and boys’ football teams. BCSA has also trained local leaders in coaching and event management who have continued to support the football structures within refugee camps. The startup project was funded by International Organisation for Migration .

In 2009, UNHCR contracted BCSA and GRS to continue HIV/AIDS awareness and training of football leaders in the refugee camps, and the two organizations have since organized Voluntary Counseling and Testing (VCT) tournaments in May 2009, the VCT event drew in a crowd of over 2000 spectators and participants, of which 573 were tested.

In October 2009, BCSA and GRS planned two more VCT-Football-tournament for boys and girls on Independence Day (October 24th). Besides the matches GRS provided other educational activities on HIV/AIDS awareness, while Newstart and the Mayukwa-yukwa clinic provided free Voluntary Counseling and Testing (VCT) services to anyone who wished to be tested.

UNHCR offices Community support

Come rain come sunshine Community football ground

Youth Development through Sport

Youth Development through Football (YDF) is a program implemented by the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) in partnership with local sports Non-Governmental Organisations – BCSA and Edusport Foundation. The program also involves local water and sanitation organisations working in communities with high rate of water-borne diseases.

BCSA and GIZ have partnered to implement Water and Sanitation Health and Hygiene (WASH) football leagues whose main aim is to utilise the power of football to empower youth and improve their life skills. The project has lined up water and sanitation activities in Ndola and Solwezi.

Zambia Streetfootball Network Program

In 2006, BCSA established the Zambia Street Football Network (ZSFN) whereby staff working in football-based organisations could come together to play football and share tools with one another for using sport as a tool for development. The major focus of the network is to learn from best practices and collaboration to better organise exciting sports and recreational activities for children and youth.

BSA is heavily involved in the strategic planning and management of the ZSFN. The network has three other partners, Grassroot Soccer, Kalim Sports Council and Bauleni Sports Academy, who are involved implementing community projects using football as a tool and HIV/AIDS education. BCSA has in the last three years helped to organize local events in Lusaka aimed at increasing participation within the ZSFN communities. The network plans to increase the number of participating partners within Zambia.

The ZSFN is a project supported in the framework of the Football for Hope Movement. The Football for Hope Movement is the key element of the strategic alliance between FIFA and streetfootballworld that has recently been enacted. The objective is to establish a quality seal for sustainable social and human development programs focusing on football as the central tool in areas of health promotion; peace building; anti-discrimination and social integration; children’s rights and education; as well as environment to support best practices in the field. BSA is a proud implementing partner of the Football for Hope Movement and the ZSFN.

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BREAKTHROUGH SPORTS ACADEMY PROGRAMS AND PROJECTS

CORE SKILLS DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM

BCSA aims to identify, support and build upon a child’s skill and enthusiasm in a given sport. Its structure creates sporting opportunity for children with athletic ability, as well as those who are complete beginners. Young sports enthusiasts are provided with individualized programs and their progression is monitored through monthly evaluation reports. Reports are kept in each child’s file and a copy is provided for their parents and/or guardians. BCSA strives to create a community whereby young people are challenged in learning technique and teamwork while having fun.

The sports academy provides organised competitions with different organisations working in sport in different communities, to identify players with the aim of motivating them and linking them to local teams. Players who wish to be part of the BCSA will sign a contract with parents to ensure commitment.

Staff is comprised of national and international sports specialists who regularly hold workshops for athletic and organizationsl development in sport. This creates broader participation among young players and will generate coaching interest for young people through Junior Sports Leader courses under BCSA. Recreational sport will be an emphasis for the young people and the“Fair Play” and “sport Zambia” ethos will be promoted.

BCSA is recognized in Zambia for its capacity in promoting sports development in Zambia for under 16's. Its focus goes beyond sport to the development of young people through health and environmental education.

ENVIRONMENTAL PROJECT

BCSA is proud to build the communities in which its young players grow up. To clean up the environment and raise awareness on littering, BCSA conducts community cleaning in different parts of Lusaka to reduce unhygienic conditions and create more safe spaces for recreation. Players and coaches bring a few tools and a great deal of determination to keep the city clean and show other Zambians that something can be done. Hopefully others will follow up on this initiative.

In addition to the clean-ups, BCSA players and coaches actively engage in tree plantin to keep the air clean.

JUNIOR SPORTS LEADERSHIP PROGRAM

BCSA uses sport as a tool for promoting youth leadership. Volunteer work in our township has increased among youths and the need to train them in leadership has become an important task. BCSA have so far trained 18 Junior Sports Leaders who commenced as players and then grew into coaching roles within BCSA and the community. BCSA coaches are currently running under 12 and under 14 teams within the township. The Junior Sports Leader program is the backbone of BSA and these coaches motivate younger players to become involved in sport.

Lashon Banda - Grassroot Soccer Peer Educator and BCSA Youth coach

COMMUNITY OUTREACH PROGRAM

The Community Outreach Program has been designed to help promote sport within 6 of BCSA 's target communities. These 6 communities are populated by more than 500,000 individuals, of which over 50 percent are under 16 years. BCSA has utilized this program to promote volunteerism in all of its community projects which are nearly completely run by local volunteers. BCSA has helped to set up a community committee to run sport within the 6 target communities. The community uses BCSA as the secretariat to run administrative work and organise workshops on HIV/AIDS, life skills and coaching workshops for all youth coaches.

One of the Tvaluable projects BCSA implements within its 6 target communities is the Ligie Yathu's children and youth league. This project has been existing for fives years now and has had great impact with the township. The number of teams have increase from just 4 under 10 to 13 teams, 8 under 12 teams to 16, teams for youths above 14 years to 14 teams, 22 under 18 teams and 10 girls teams for under 18 girls. The number of players participating has risen from 100 to more 1000 children and youths. BCSA also organises tournaments for league teams. The accomodate the under 10 boys who are not in the league, friendly games are organized alongside the league.

THE DROP-IN SPORTS CAMP

This is an equally exciting structure for boys and girls. Drop-In Sports Camps (DSC) accommodate children every bi-weekly for a weekend and every weekend during term breaks. Children participate voluntarily and register their attendance through the camp director. Participants and their parents are not obligated to sign contracts with BCSA to participate in the sports camps, however they are obligated to abide to the camp rules and regulations as drafted by the board members. The regulations will be standard according to international sports camp regulations.

The DSC focus on exciting sporting moments, site seeing and team building. Sports camps offer opportunity for young people in both urban and rural communities in Zambia. Parents are welcome to observe as watching children play sports can be one of the most exciting experiences in family life.

DSC Activities:

Rugby
Soccer
Cricket
Softball
Basketball (city camps)

FOOTPRINT TOWNSHIP TOURS

The footprint Township tour project is a unique project aimed at bringing to light the joyful vibrant township life of Lusaka. The townships have been portrayed in a different way and in most cases, negative. Footprint Township Tours has embarked in this project to try and change people's understanding on township life and also to show our new visitors to Lusaka how people live. Some notable township vibes range from extended bars, smiling children, happy neighbors, crowded markets with a range of Zambian products being sold, community schools, th crafts man's den and dead end streets which lead to somewhere.

BCSA, the program initiator has been overwhelmed by the response it received after taking 7 sports volunteers for a free tour. The response by the community and the volunteers was positive. Today the project has been improved and it has become a key fundraising project by the Academy. BCSA is a non profit community based organization which aims at promoting sport in the township. Its main source of income over the three years of its existence has been doing fundraising through car wash, street corner and shopping center fundraising, and contributions from parents. This project will remain the biggest fundraising program to raise money for the increasing expenditures on running the academy, paying for school fees for children who have devoted their time to BSA.

TOUR GUIDES

Tour guides of the township tours are well travelled and have visited South Africa, Lesotho, Swaziland,Australia, Norway, Sweden and England. The guides therefore understand the life of a backpacker, especially in Africa. Backpacking in South Africa brings a lot of similarities in the needs of a tourists when it comes to an urban setting. They want to see the real African life style in an urban setting. After going on township tours in South Africa's Khayelitsha and Soweto townships, the experience has helped BSA set the perfect tour in a Zambian context.

TARGET AREAS FOR THE TOURS

The Footprint township tours takes tourists to Garden Township, an area where many BCSA players live and which provides a glimpse into the 'real' Zambian township life. It also stands out to have a rich history and participants can visit vibrant sites such as Uncle Dons Booz Buzz; Chilulu Market which has a range of products from from old car parts to vegetables; The Famous Stream of Life; The Community School; The Oldest Farm House; The Oldest Madbricks Homes; The Redcross Drop-In Center; Camp David Entertainment Center; The Craftsman's Den; and Breakthrough Sports Academy, where kids show case their abundant township soccer skills.

HEALTH AND SAFETY

Health and safety is the main priority for a successful tour and this component is taken on seriously. Over the years BCSA has won trust among the locals as some of their children have participated in programs and even trips to Europe to play football. This relationship ensures that tour guides are provided with up to date information on the area from local police and community members.

The township tours have just created a new dimension towards creating new opportunities for people in the township, as four boys from the township are newly trained tour guides. We wish you all welcome on a real township tour in the heart of Lusaka.

Garden township - Lusaka