2017 started of great and it's been getting better and better!  We kicked off the year by cementing a 3 year partnership with Coaches Across Continents, CAC, who will be implementing their Hat-trick Initiative, which:

" consists of comprehensive, year-round organizational development and sport for social impact education that focuses on local issues such as: female empowerment, including gender equity; conflict prevention, including social inclusion; health and wellness, including HIV/AIDS behavior change; child rights; vital life skills; and fun."

Coaches Across Continents

This partnership will enable us to implement our plan to reach primary schools across the Pafuri node of the Great Limpopo Transfrontier Park, GLTP, with a sport for social development programme.  In South Africa, we will be focusing on the Masisi Cluster which consists of 5 primary schools, in Zimbabwe, we intend to work with 9 primary schools, all from the Malipati area and in Mozambique, 4 primary schools from the Pafuri region.

In Zimbabwe, we are excited to invite educators from the Chilojo Club to participate in the on-field training programmes with CAC and to help implement a sport for social development initiative in the 49 schools they visit.  With South Africa, we are also happy to invite educators and local coaches from the Makuleke concession to join in the training session and to help implement a sport for social development programme in their community.

The partnership with CAC has already led to many other opportunities materializing. Vincent, our main Community Coach in South Africa, has been selected for a 9 month on-line Sport for Social Develpoment course.  This started in March, so far Vincent has responded to the webinars with grreat enthusiasm and has already started to implement what he has learnt from the curriculum in 2 local communities.

At the end of February, Tshilidzi, a volunteer Community Coach from South Africa, was 1 of 10 people selected, out of 74 applicants, to attend the Michael Johnson Young Leaders Academy  Dallas, Texas in June.  This 9 day, fully funded course entails intensive training in coaching styles and implementation of a community projects, the academy, for 1 year, will also fund a project initiated by Tshilidzi in his local community. Tshilidiz's USA visa interview is on the 15th May, please send him positive thoughts for that!

These oppurtunities will be open to other local participants in 2018, we hope our future community coaches from Zimbabwe and Mozambique will be as successful as Vincent and Tshilidzi! 

Tshilidzi (left) will be going to the USA in June. Vincent  (right) is concentrating on his first of many webinars to come. Both gaining skills thanks to Coaches Across Continents.

March, we were awarded a grant from the Geoff Herrington Foundation, this gave us the oppurtunity for our project to get off the ground in earnest, this grant has so far allowed us to:

• employ Vincent full time
• provide internet data for Vincent to do his on-line course
• plan the first on-field training course with CAC in July, one week in South Africa, Mutele area and one week in Zimbabwe, Malipati area
• provide passports and accommodation for potential community coaches from Mozambique to attend the training courses
• visit and cement relationships with communities and primary schools across the Pafuri node of the GLTP
• hold an International Women's Day awareness campaign with additonal educational games provided by CAC

We also plan on employing 2 more Community Coaches this year, 1 from Zimbabwe and 1 from Mozambique.

Thank you to all the trustees of the Geoff Herrington Foundation for giving us this oppurtunity.

International Women's Day

International Women's Day on the 8th March, took us to Masisi primary school where we shared the afternoon with grades 6 & 7, along with Peace Corps volunteers, Michelle Dolinar and Colin O'Brien.  By combining fun football and volley ball games, we were able to look at the different words associated with men and women, as well as the difference in social barriers which women face compared to men in life.  Part of WPWC intended focus is to look into gender equality and to promote girls sports across the Pafuri node of the Great Limpopo Transfrontier Park.

Project Rhino Art and Madikwe Reserve

Mid-March, we were honoured to be invited to Madikwe Reserve to witness Project Rhino Art and the Kingsley Holgate Foundation in action with the community of Obakeng village, this function, funded in part by Elephants Rhino and People ERP, was exceptional to see, there was so much love for the communities, the kids and for Rhinos.  We are planning on partnering with Project Rhino Art to bring awareness to the schools we will be operating with, to educate students about the plight of Rhinos and Elephants in Africa and to give the students a chance for their voices to be heard through their art work.  

Project Rhino Art aims to reach 1,000,000 kids throughout Africa and Asia, they have so far reached about 350,000 kids, our objective is to add between 5,000 and 7,500 kids from the Pafuri area to this number in the near future.

2017 GLTP, Pafuri Regional Championships

This years final is initially planned for September, when the Limpopo is crossable and once all the regional playoffs have taken place.  We intend to have dancers from the 3 countries competing and entertaining guests, this will bring a more cultural aspect to the day and enable women of the local area to showcase some of their many talents.

Zimbabwe's playoff, the Sengwe Anti-Poaching Soccer Tournament, will be happening on the 11th May.  South Africa is still yet to plan their playoffs, the local league games makes for difficult planning,  as for Mozambique we are hoping for a late May or early June playoff.

How you can help.

World Parks, World Cup is an initiative of Friends of Mutale, a UK registered Charity #1129965.  We continue to need your help so we can aid students in the area to reach their full potential and for us to help them become positive citizens for conservation.

Do you know anybody wanting to volunteer as coaches, teaching assistants or who just want an alternative holiday? click here for more info.

Thank you for your support.

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