Global Press Institute by Merveille Kavira Luneghe Sunday 22nd March, 2015
GOMA, DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO - Hundreds of spectators crowd around a dusty rectangle in the Mabanga neighborhood of Goma, the capital of the North Kivu province of the Democratic Republic of Congo, jostling for better views of a football game.
There is no formal football field here. Local boys practice on unoccupied lots.
Nickson Kambere, 15, a secondary school student, has been playing football since he was 7. Along with 30 other young men, he plays for Puturu, the team that represents the Mabanga neighborhood in the Football League of North Kivu.
I love my football game, Nickson says. It gives me lots of advantages.
In addition to enabling him to develop his athletic skills, football has kept him from sliding into juvenile delinquency, as many teenage boys do here.
Football has had the power to help me avoid making mistakes, such as theft, says Nickson, who admits he has been penalized for petty crimes in the past.
North Kivu has been mired in armed conflict and criminal violence for decades. The regions struggling economy leaves many young men jobless.
In that setting, football provides an alternative path, says Steven Paluku, 16, who has played since he was 8.
In his eight years of play, Paluku has developed as an athlete, made friends and avoided trouble, he says.
He and his teammates get along well.
We dont get into fights, he says.
Arsne Zawadi, 12, who also plays for the Puturu team, agrees.
Football shields me from bad behavior, Arsne says. In our neighborhood and at home, hemp smoking and drinking alcohol are common.
Oswald Osso, the coach of Puturu team, says his work enables him to contribute to the countrys cultural and moral development.
Teens here find themselves locked into bad practices like hemp smoking and using weapons, he says. But once teens are on soccer fields, that can change. Running after the ball can clear the mind of negative thoughts.
In a place where armed conflict, high unemployment and easy access to alcohol, marijuana and other drugs contribute to a high rate of juvenile delinquency, neighborhood football leagues keep young people occupied in a constructive manner.
Criminality among young people in DRC stems from poverty, unemployment and underemployment, and complex social factors.
Most people live in poverty in DRC, though the poverty rate dropped from 71 percent in 2005 to 63 percent in 2012, according to the World Bank. In 2012, the per capitaincome was $220.
Dozens of rebel groups operate in DRC, and these militias forcibly recruit young men. Drug use is common throughout the country.
But engagement in sports has been shown to steer young people away from crime in conflict and postconflict zones throughout the world.
Neighborhood football is having a real impact in the community, says Anaclet Mpongo, chief of the sports and recreation division of North Kivu province.
First, a teen who plays neighborhood-based football cannot be tempted to become a pickpocket, he says. Instead, he spends his time playing, so he will not be lured into smoking.
In the eastern provinces of Democratic Republic of Congo, where armed conflict, high unemployment and easy access to alcohol, marijuana and other drugs contribute to a high rate of juvenile delinquency, neighborhood football leagues keep young people occupied in a constructive manner.
Teens here find themselves locked into bad practices like hemp smoking and using weapons. But once teens are on soccer fields, that can change. Running after the ball can clear the mind of negative thoughts.
Oswald Osso, coach of the Puturu football team in Goma, DRC
Criminality among young people in DRC stems from poverty, unemployment and underemployment, and complex social factors. Most people live in poverty in DRC; in 2012, the per capita income was $220. Dozens of rebel groups operate in DRC, and these militias forcibly recruit young men. Drug use is common throughout the country.
But engagement in sports has been shown to steer young people away from crime in conflict and postconflict zones throughout the world.
In Goma, the capital of the North Kivu province, football coaches and players say the sport gives boys an alternative to lives of drug use, crime and armed conflict. They are pushing the government to fulfill its commit to build more neighborhood football fields in Goma.
Football shields me from bad behavior. In our neighborhood and at home, hemp smoking and drinking alcohol are common. I come home so tired and so I just go to sleep.
Arsne Zawadi, 12
Unfortunately, the government breaks its promise regarding neighborhood-based football. Out of 19 neighborhoods, only four have football fields.
Anaclet Mpongo, chief of the sports and recreation division of DRCs North Kivu province
Sometimes I tell my son to go back to the stadium for more training for fear that he might steal my money.
Jeanne Kabuo
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