On the 6th of January, 2024, CAC Satellite Manager, Salim Twaha Blanden set off on a brief journey to Rwanda, marking his second visit to this captivating country. Rwanda holds a special place in his heart, chiefly for its pristine capital city, Kigali, and the enduring lushness of its landscapes.
Education beyond the confines of traditional classrooms has long been a practice in Rwanda. The Ishami Foundation, in collaboration with coaches Oscari and Evariste, has been employing CAC (Coaches Across Continents) games to develop a new curriculum that caters to celebrating cultural legacy and life lessons. When presented with the task of creating this curriculum, CAC came up with brilliant adaptations and invented some innovative games like “Kwibuka“, Ishami good health, and Girinka among a list of several purposeful play games. This innovative collaboration sheds light on the tragic events against the Tutsi community in 1994. It seeks to promote indigenous solutions, commemorating the remembrance (Kwibuka) and espousing the core values of Rwanda in the aftermath of that dark chapter in history.
The 1994 tragedy, born out of deep-seated animosity, discrimination, and societal divides, resulted in an unfathomable loss of life, claiming the lives of approximately 800,000 to one million individuals in a mere 100 days. The partnership between the Ishami Foundation and Coaches Across Continents aims to raise awareness about these harrowing events through the medium of football as part of the ongoing journey towards healing and reconciliation.
On the 7th of January, at Togetherness FC, Salim had the pleasure of engaging with a group of 200 enthusiastic young people. Together, we participated in a series of games such as Mingle Mingle, leadership lines, Kwibuka (remembrance), Ndi Umunyarwandwa (Salim am Rwandese), Umukobwa Arashoboye, and Imihigo.
The Kwibuka game was led by Eric, the founder of the Ishami Foundation, with Evariste providing translations for the local spectators. Evariste also actively participated in leading some of the games. While Oscari was unable to join us due to illness, her contributions to the community through CAC games were duly noted.
IMPACT NUMBERS FROM CA ON-FIELD WITH ISHAMI FOUNDATION
| #of Coaches Trained | #of Female Coaches Trained | #of youth impacted | #of girls youth impacted |
| 200 | 40 | 1100 | 400 |
A crowd of around 400 onlookers, comprising members of Togetherness FC, their American counterparts who had generously donated a football field to the club, and six coaches from Togetherness FC, eagerly observed and absorbed the lessons imparted through our purposeful play games. We extended an invitation to these individuals to attend our upcoming on-field programme for 2024, and their keenness to learn more and implement our games was palpable.
This year, we are once again set to conduct on-field sessions in Rwanda in partnership with the Ishami Foundation. We anticipate engaging with a large cohort of local coaches and leaders, spreading the message of purposeful play, and imparting valuable insights from the Rwandan values curriculum. This association with Ishami Foundation is also looking for funds to support the efforts invested in restoring the pride and cultural Legacy of Rawanda. If you want to be a part of this journey, write to us at partnerwithus@coachesacrosscontinents.org.
