International
2010 World Cup
Africa United
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As Africa prepares to host its first ever World Cup, a new book has been released examining the continent’s passion for football.
Anyone who has travelled in Africa will recognise the images Steve Bloomfield paints in “Africa United”, whether it’s the small boys in David Beckham shirts kicking a ball of scrunched up plastic bags in the dust, or the noisy crowds packed around television screens on weekend afternoons, cheering on their favourite European teams. From Cape Town to Cairo, football is an obsession.
Bloomfield, a British writer and journalist, moved to Nairobi in 2006 as the Independent’s Africa Correspondent, determined to tell “uplifting, positive stories” about the continent.
But the demands of the western news agenda inevitably took him towards stories of war and chaos. So he hit upon the idea of writing a book about African football as a way of getting below the surface and telling other kinds of stories.
Ahead of the South Africa World Cup, Bloomfield has travelled through 13 African countries looking at how football has helped shape nations and people. In some cases, he finds the beautiful game has even become a matter of life and death.
When Cote d’Ivoire was split in two by civil war, for example, national football captain Didier Drogba’s 2007 decision to play a World Cup qualifier in the rebel-held north was widely seen as helping to cement the recently agreed peace deal. A 2009 game between Egypt and Algeria, however, ignited simmering tensions and sparked violence between rival fans.
But what stands out most from these stories is the characters Bloomfield meets along the way, ordinary Africans working against the odds to make a difference.
With the world’s attention now on the World Cup for the next 4 weeks, it’s a great opportunity for us all to see Africa and the citizens of African nations in a new light.
Find out more about the book on the Africa United website.
1GOAL
The greatest football tournament in the world gets underway tomorrow. I can’t wait. I only wish my team (England) was on slightly better form, but I’m still hopeful! There is also something positive we can do to create a lasting legacy that could see millions more kids receive an education…
South African President Jacob Zuma has just announced that he will hold a global leadership summit during the World Cup. The aim? Push leaders to give the 72 million children still out of school an education by 2015. Something that’s not hard to support. So ONE is teaming up with 1GOAL, bringing together footballers and fans, to give world leaders the extra kick needed to make it happen.
Please join millions of people around the world by taking action
Make sure to write your own personal message with the petition as 1GOAL will be delivering these ‘yellow cards’ to world leaders on 7 July.
Since 2000, 42 million more children are in school thanks to effective aid and other policies. As the world turns its attention to Africa for the first football World Cup held on the continent, let’s enjoy the game and help give every child a basic education.
Now wouldn’t that be a legacy for the World Cup.
What gives you hope?
Last week ONE was at its first-ever Ecumenical Church Convention in Germany, which took place in Munich. At our booth, visitors could get information about ONE, become a ONE member or simply come up to us for a chat. Additionally, we asked people to leave a mark – virtually via video message or on our very real ‘post-it note’ wall – and asked them to answer 3 questions:
Our first question “What gives you hope?” pertained directly to the convention’s slogan leading many to name faith in God or the good in people; others draw hope from their family and friends, the sun, the sea or music….
Secondly, we wanted to know “What comes to mind when you think of Africa?” The answer diverged from poverty, HIV and injustice to countryside, music and African culture… It turned out that quite a few of our guests had visited Africa and told us about their experiences.
“Who will win the World Cup”? While some fans put their hopes in Ghana and South Africa, other visitors favoured Spain or the Netherlands. Not surprisingly, most of our visitors seemed to pin their hopes on Germany!
The video messages are all in German, but you can check out our pictures on the ONE Germany Facebook page to get an impression of the Church Convention.
What about you: What gives you hope? What comes to your mind when you think of Africa? And who do you think will win the World Cup?
8 Goals for Africa
In the run up to the football World Cup, which kicks off next month in South Africa, some of Africa’s most renowned musicians have joined the United Nations to call for a commitment to achieve the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) – a set of 8 internationally-agreed goals designed to reduce poverty, hunger, disease, and maternal and child deaths by 2015.
Watch the video here:
The ‘8 Goals for Africa’ song features 8 of Africa’s best known musicians: Yvonne Chaka Chaka from South Africa, Angelique Kidjo from Benin, Oliver Mtukudzi from Zimbabwe, Eric Wainaina from Kenya, Baaba Maal from Senegal, and the Soweto Gospel Choir from South Africa. World renowned jazz musicians Hugh Masekela and Jimmy Dludlu from South Africa are also instrumentalists on the track.
Ending extreme poverty by 2015 was the historic promise made by world leaders at the UN Millennium Summit in 2000 when they signed up to the Millennium Declaration and agreed to meet the MDGs by 2015. The MDGs are an 8-point road map with measurable targets and clear deadlines for improving the lives of the world’s poorest people. 10 years on, world leaders are meeting again this September in New York to review the progress made and renew their commitment to achieving the goals.
It’s up to all of us to make sure they keep their promise.
Find out more about the campaign on the 8 Goals for Africa website, download the song and start spreading the word today.
Kick out malaria with the Archbishop of Canterbury
For the very first time, the Archbishop of Canterbury has recorded a message for World Malaria Day to show his support and urge others to help kick malaria out for good. He made the message in support of United Against Malaria, a diverse coalition that aims to raise global awareness and renew worldwide commitment to ending malaria.
Here’s an excerpt of the Archbishop’s message:
“One of the things that I was taught when I was growing up was that among the greatest achievements of modern science was the identification of where malaria came from. That was many years ago and in the intervening years, tragically the challenge of malaria has grown worse not better…But we do have the resources to eliminate malaria. The goal has been set for getting rid of malaria and on this World Malaria Day it’s important to remember that goal.”
You can listen to his full remarks in the video below:
Jessica Alba on education for all
I had an incredible week, joining the ONE team on the road in Senegal and Ghana as part of the 1GOAL: Education for All campaign to make the lasting legacy of the upcoming World Cup education for every child.
I’ve wanted to travel to Africa my whole life and when offered the opportunity to listen and learn alongside ONE, it was a once in a lifetime chance that I couldn’t pass up. I’ve always admired the work ONE has done and being able to see the programs you’ve contributed to firsthand was inspiring.
We met African entrepreneurs and academics, spoke with civil society and private sector leaders. We sat with street vendors at a microfinance project, heard from women now able to save their and their children’s lives through ARV HIV/AIDS treatment. We met some amazing people, a new generation of leaders for not only the continent, but for the world.
My goal in going on this trip was to listen closely and learn more about the fight against global poverty. And what I heard repeatedly was that as I’ve always believed, education has the power to lift individuals, communities and entire nations out of poverty. From a promising business idea to a woman pushing cultural boundaries to stand up and speak out, education has been the key.
Today, 72 million kids are out of school around the world, the majority of them girls. Without an education, they are almost certain to be trapped in a life of poverty and robbed of the knowledge of their basic human rights. Every year a child is out of school is a year they lose in literacy, in health, in opportunity.
It doesn’t have to be this way. Since 2000, because people like you and governments took action, 48 million more children are in school. And if we come together around this World Cup, we can do even more to put education front and center. Together with FIFA, leading players and fans around the world, we can use the power of this truly global game to ensure that education for all is a lasting impact of the 2010 FIFA World Cup. We have a plan, we know how to beat this—all we need now is the will to make it happen.
Increased global education funding fights global poverty at the root, empowers girls and women, and promotes economic growth in poor countries around the world. And it’s a very smart investment: experts tell us that a girl will earn an additional 10% in income for every year of schooling she receives and be 50% less likely to become infected with HIV/AIDS. In Africa, children of mothers who receive five years of primary education are 40% more likely to live beyond the age of 5. It’s a proactive measure to avert many of the problems that plague developing countries.
We spent a day at Osu School in Accra, Ghana, where initiatives to provide free school uniforms and free lunch to students have dramatically increased enrollment. And they have one other policy with great results—requiring perfect attendance to play on the school’s soccer or “football” team! As a result of these programs, 71% of Ghanaian girls and 73% of Ghanaian boys go to school. Ghana’s President John Atta Mills has even signed up to 1GOAL, promising to provide free textbooks to every student.
At Osu, we met Stephen, an 18-year-old student with enormous talent. The Ghanaian Premiere League has already had their eye on this young goalkeeper for the past three years. The school’s headmaster has been keeping tabs on Stephen, constantly reminding him that you can’t be a good player without a good education. He stresses to Stephen that the only way he will know how to sustain the wealth and opportunities he will gain as a “footballer” (soccer player) is by having an education.
Stephen is an inspiring young man. He is the eldest of seven children and his family’s sole provider. He wakes early, goes to school, practices with his coaches in the afternoon and then goes to work at night as a busboy to support the family. On average he goes non-stop for 18 hours.
He told us that he now understands he cannot be a footballer or achieve his dreams without an education. Top teams are looking to recruit him. He dreams of playing for his national team, the Ghana Black Stars, and someday becoming a catcher for Chelsea.
You can’t go anywhere in Africa without seeing kids playing the sport. The excitement for the first-ever World Cup in Africa this summer is everywhere. The world’s eyes will be on the continent and it’s a moment for Africa to shine.
Global Education summit announced
Great news from London regarding 1GOAL, ONE’s partner for the football World Cup.
South African President Zuma met today with UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown and announced that South Africa will host a global summit on education during the World Cup this summer. Aaron Mokoena, South Africa’s football captain and 1GOAL Ambassador, who met with President Zuma said “I am delighted that the Government of South Africa had decided to host a summit for education for all children” and Her Majesty Queen Rania (Co-Founder and Global Co-Chair of 1GOAL) congratulated President Zuma and Prime Minister Brown on “their vision and commitment to make global education the greatest goal of the South Africa World Cup 2010.”
This announcement gives real political momentum to the campaign to ensure all children go to school, which would be an incredible legacy of the World Cup.
For more information on the campaign visit the 1GOAL website
1GOAL goes mobile
 Mobile phone operators sign up to 1GOAL |
Mobile phone operators from around the world have teamed up with ONE’s partner 1GOAL, in support of universal education at this summer’s football World Cup in South Africa.
The operators, who serve more than 1 billion mobile users, will encourage people to sign up to the campaign, demonstrating to global leaders and the UN that universal education is a universal demand.
Making the announcement in Barcelona, Spain at the Mobile World Congress, Her Majesty, Queen Rania Al Abdullah of Jordan, Co-founder and Co-Chair of 1GOAL said:
“I want to thank each and every one of you here today who has joined the 1GOAL team and who’ll reach out to subscribers with a message, an app, or a widget. 1GOAL is about people-power… the largest ever, never-before-done, cause-related campaign of its kind. And I hope that those of you in the mobile ecosystem who haven’t done so, will join up and sign up before our kick-off in April.”
South African football caption Aaron Mokoena, who recently joined ONE in London to talk about the importance of 2010 and the World Cup for Africa, added:
“This will be the year that the mobile fraternity and football joined hands for the greatest of events, and the greatest of causes; Education for all.”
The 1GOAL campaign aims to ensure that the lasting legacy of the football World Cup next year in South Africa is that every child can be learning in school by 2015.
Meet Ben Palafox
ONE’s recent screening of Invictus, the new film by Clint Eastwood (which recently bagged Oscar nominations for both its stars, Morgan Freeman and Matt Damon), was an opportunity to reflect on the huge opportunity that the upcoming football World Cup in South Africa presents to reinvigorate the global fight against poverty through the uniting power of sport.
ONE member Ben Palafox was also there, having won our contest to attend the screening. Originally from Canada, Ben is currently a researcher at the London School of Hygiene working on malaria drug access. Ben has worked and travelled abroad extensively, most recently in Nigeria.
Ben first became involved with ONE when researching Project (RED), ONE’s sister organisation. “I was attracted to the way ONE reaches out to people who aren’t necessarily activists and helps them to learn about important global issues. I’ve also seen the impact of ONE’s campaigns – the unique combination of high level celebrity endorsement combined with millions of supporters is a powerful combination.”
Ben’s commitment to poverty and development issues comes originally from his experiences as a 1st generation Canadian coming from a Filipino family.
“I was one of the lucky ones – my family emigrated from a developing nation to a first world nation and I feel I now have the opportunity to give back. ONE’s work helps generate awareness about development in a really important way – and I’m happy to be a part of it.”
And what was his favourite part of the film itself? “The intimate portrait of Mandela – he’s not someone you think of needing to shave or brush his teeth!”
Ben with South African football captain Aaron Mokoena at the screening.
Invictus
South African football captain Aaron Mokoena and ONE co-founder Bob Geldof at the screening of the film Invictus
On Monday night ONE was lucky to host an advance screening in London of the new film Invictus, which opens this month in much of Europe.
Directed by Clint Eastwood, Invictus tells the inspiring true story of how Nelson Mandela (Morgan Freeman) joined forces with the captain of South Africa’s rugby team, Francois Pienaar (Matt Damon) to help unite their country. Believing he could bring his people together through the universal language of sport, Mandela rallied South Africa’s underdog rugby team as they made an unlikely run to the 1995 World Cup final.
As the world’s attention turns to the continent this year for the football world cup, it’s time to unite once again to celebrate the successes we’ve achieved, and renew our energies to go the distance to achieve the rest of the Millenium Development Goals by 2015.
We were joined on the night by journalists, politicians, footballers, celebrities, and a lucky ONE member, Benjamin Palafox, who won our online contest.
After the film ONE co-founder Bob Geldof and South African football captain Aaron Mokoena, spoke passionately about the importance of this 2010 for Africa and how the world cup can focus the eyes of the world, including the 3 billion or more who will watch the competition, on the good news that’s coming from the continent.
Keep an eye on the ONE blog for video from the event, which we will be posting shortly.
P.S. To find out more about Invictus visit the the official movie website.
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About the Blog
The International ONE Blog is a daily log of the anti-poverty movement. The site is operated by ONE staff, with guest contributions from ONE volunteers, members and allies.
The content of each post and each comment represents the views of that author and does not necessarily reflect the views of ONE. ONE does not support or oppose any candidate for elected office, and any post expressing support or opposition for a candidate is not endorsed by ONE.
TAGS: 2010 World Cup, Africa