Uganda

Contact Persons
Yoacel Patrick

Role in NA
Youth Promoter & Development officer

When and where?
The events took place both in Uganda and in Nairobi, Kenya from 8-14 May. A Ugandan team called Wanainchi went to Nairobi for the Simba Hockey Festival. Another group was in Uganda for a local tournament. The young stars had a mini-clinic with games at a junior school called Taibah Junior Academy.

What was the target group?
The clinic was held at the Taibah Youth Academy for children aged 5-14. The tournament in Uganda and Nairobi was for boys and girls aged 15-25.

What was the aim of the event?
1. Introduce and create fun for kids, as well as attract those who don’t know the game to do so while watching their friends play.

2. Try and impart coaching skills to kids through fun games. Help to create a free sporting atmosphere for youth players aged between 15-25 through short matches (such as 20 minutes games of 11 aside). This also gives us an opportunity to identify talent amongst these players.

3. Help reward youth players who have been in the game to endure the hardships where we could not afford foreign trips by taking them for a tournament in Nairobi where they played against fellow youths as well as some older players (veterans).

Follow-up from the event
1. Widen the hockey view by taking and introducing the game to other parts of the country like schools, clubs and local communities.

2. Try and create an international playing atmosphere for our players by involving some international players from foreign countries. We are hosting a girl’s team from Netherlands in October 2006 for a week-long tour with a tournament to be played.

3. Develop and encourage a good exchange program with youth from different nations to get involved with our youths like a pen pal program.

4. We plan to start an academy for hockey players one day. This will help us raise the players we need to represent the country at international events in future.