November 4, 2019 – In mid-October, a soccer team comprising of women from the Kiryandongo Refugee Settlement – sponsored and trained by the Whitaker Peace & Development Initiative (WPDI) – competed in a gala tournament for women in Northern Uganda. The one-day tournament was held in Gulu under the theme Empowering Women and Refugees Through Football and was quite popular, with over 800 community members and local officials attending.
Under our Peace Through Sports program, WPDI has sponsored sporting events that have brought together thousands of youths to play football, volleyball, and basketball at places like the Kiryandongo Refugee Settlement. Sports is one of the most powerful tools with which we can teach youths important fundamental values, such as tolerance, respect for rules and regulations, and fair play. With that in mind, the Empowering Women and Refugees Through Football tournament was a great way for youths from the settlement and the Acholi sub-region to meet each other, engage in peaceful, respectful competition, and have fun while doing so. As the Gulu District’s Sports Officer remarked, “we hope this event will help create friendships and promote peaceful coexistence between the girls.”
Throughout the day, a total of 12 matches were played between six teams that hailed from around Northern Uganda. The WPDI team fared well, and after scoring four goals against Watoto FC, they emerged as the tournament’s champion team. More importantly, however, was the impact the tournament had on its participants. Senya, an 18-year-old South Sudanese refugee from the Kiryandongo Refugee Settlement and the captain of the WPDI team, told us that “my participation in this gala tournament enabled me to learn about discipline and that, as a leader of a great team, I have to be exemplary all of the time. My participation has also inspired me to be more involved in the promotion of youth activities, especially girls in football, and I will use this inspiration to take WPDI soccer to another level. One day, I hope to play on South Sudan’s national women’s team.”
At the close of the tournament, local district officials commended WPDI and the tournament’s larger impact: “a culture of peace will emerge from allowing girls to play football. This tournament will promote their talents and the values of peace among the community.”