Brazil: Football for development
In October 2017, GFA Bridges launched a project to improve the social and emotional development of children and young people in Ceilândia using the Social Training methodology developed by GIZ together with Brazilian and German football organizations. Ceilândia is located on the periphery of the country’s capital Brasília. About 200 boys and girls attend the House of Hope, a non-profit football school. The initiative uses the project to take these young people of the street and away from risky situations by offering a safe space for football training, social and emotional learning, and social security.
GFA finances the capacity building of House of Hope football trainers and social workers, and the purchase of materials to improve the conditions of the football and social trainings. The Ceilândia community supports the project with a newly renovated indoor soccer field, locker rooms and a hall for activities on rainy days, as well the salary of a football teacher and an assistant coach.
Armin Deitenbach, GFA team leader of the Biodiversity and Climate Change in the Atlantic Forest project in Brazil initiated this venture.