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Time on the pitch and numerous life skills trainings have equipped young girls with knowledge and ability to make good choices.
Deep inside the sprawling Kibera slums is Undugu Queens Football Club, a community based club that has prioritized the well being of teenage girls growing up with predators all around them.
Coach Laban Okoth divulges that the community-based team was birthed specifically to ensure they keep the young girls in Kibera busy and nurture and develop their talent, thereby alleviating the all too familiar distractions.
Okoth revealed that the football club is not only about football but also about training the young girls on life skills.
“A friend of mine and I started the club in 2020 when the pandemic was intensifying. We realised many young girls in Kibera were idle and we wanted to come up with an initiative that would keep the young girls busy.
Other than playing football, we always use the club to mentor the young girls and teach them some basic life skills that help them,” Okoth said, as quoted by Radull Live.
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The tactician revealed that they host mentorship programs mostly during school holidays when everybody is around.
He added that they carry out their training sessions during weekends for the under-13 team. They also get to engage in tournaments when schools are on holidays.
Okoth also revealed that through the young girl’s talent in the sport, they are able to land scholarships to study in schools. “This year, we managed to get three girls to schools due to their talent,” he said.
However, it is not an all rosy journey for the young girls and the management. Okoth said the quality of the field is not conducive and that affects them a lot. He added that sometimes girls also need basic resources for school and to run their daily lives.
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Going forward, Okoth has great plans for the team as he is keen to nurture a team that will produce stars to play for the national team and hopefully in international clubs.
“We are also keen on starting up income generating projects for the girls when they’re done with school so that they don’t struggle,” he said.
Meanwhile, Undugu Queens Assistant Captain Charity Kioko also reiterated what the coach had said and added that joining the club has been life-changing for her.
“I joined in 2020 when they were searching for players and so far, things have been great. The coach encourages us a lot and also provides basic needs for us, she said.
Kioko added that her biggest dream going forward is to become a great player and maybe play for international clubs.
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