Ilula Orphan Program Sports Project
History
Ilula Orphan Program (IOP), is a non-governmental organization established in 1998 with the aim to support the most vulnerable children in Ilula, Tanzania. The mission is to provide opportunities for quality education, counselling and socio-economic empowerment.
In 2014, IOP registered the Ilula Tigers Sports Club as an official club. With a weekly training, the club was immediately successful recruiting students from IOP and from the village. The same year, Ilula Tigers travelled to Moshi to take part in their first tournament, the East Africa Cup. Unfortunately, this was the first, but also last time they participated. Due to fund cuts from the donors, the Ilula Tigers could not continue as a Sports Club.
Mission
We want to revive the football team of the Ilula Tigers Sports Club. Through this football club, and hopefully future other clubs (e.g. basketball and volleyball), we want to provide the youth and adults of Ilula with the substantial power of sports. Sports is more than just a game. It is a resource for development, stability and peace. It is an important means to promote education and health. Through sports, young people acquire essential life skills, such as communication, collaboration and peaceful coexistence. It teaches values, such as teamwork, work ethic and respect for rules. It can also be an economical booster through, for example, sports tournaments.
For Ilula Tigers Sports Club to achieve all this, we need to create safe spaces by constructing and renovating sports grounds, as well as getting all the necessary equipment. Unfortunately, sports is an area that is underdeveloped and underfunded, especially in Africa. Together we can build an honest and hardworking Sports Club that will create opportunities to the whole community in Ilula.
What has been done so far
As volunteers of IOP Luxembourg, an Outside Committee of IOP Tanzania, we have spent two months organizing fundraising events in Luxembourg before coming to Tanzania (http://www.lessentiel.lu/fr/luxembourg/story/nadine-et-jussi-partent-aider-des-enfants-16475130). Since our arrival, we have been using these funds to revive the Ilula Tigers Sports Club. We were able to provide the club with the primary needs, including:
- Standardizing the sports grounds
- Construction of goals
- Training material: footballs, bibs, whistles, etc.
This allowed to kickstart the training. More than 100 children and adults showed up, and the numbers are increasing daily. However, more funds are needed to keep the club running, and this is where you can help.
