The newly constructed Iringa Football for Hope Centre was officially opened yesterday by the leader of the Uhuru Torch race, Juma Ali Amir.
The centre is the 14th to open its doors as part of FIFA’s ongoing 20 Centres for 2010 campaign, which is creating 20 such Football for Hope Centres across the continent as one of the lasting social legacies of the first FIFA World Cup to have been played on African soil. The number is set to rise rapidly in the coming weeks and months — with all 20 centres due to be operational by the end of this year.
The Iringa centre is operated by Iringa Development of Youth, Disabled and Child Care (IDYDC), a non-governmental organisation that uses sport and specifically football, to promote social improvement in the town and all seven districts of Iringa Region.
IDYDC has been changing lives and mindsets in Iringa since 1991, by providing football programmes, IDYDC provides vocational training courses, distributing health-related leaflets, offering counselling services and micro-financing programmes to communities.
Hundreds of Iringa residents and several dignitaries, including Tanzania Football Federation (TFF) secretary general Angetile Osiah, attended the opening ceremony. Construction work started in June and was undertaken by Vika Construction International. Amir praised IDYDC for fulfilling their ambition of using football to spread their message and promoting the talent of children and youth in the region.
He said football is employment and the Iringa centre can produce future national team players. FIFA representative Patrick Onyango said combining football facilities with classrooms, computer equipment and public health lessons, the centres are intended to make a tangible difference to disadvantaged communities.
“Since its creation in 2005, Football for Hope has been emphasising the power of football far beyond the boundaries of a football pitch,” he said. “As the most popular game in the world, football ignites passion and brings people together in a way that few other activities can.
“It also offers a unique opportunity for communities to engage with their children and their youth and we at FIFA are very proud to see the legacy of the 2010 FIFA World Cup becoming a reality in Iringa in exactly that manner.” The centre has a 40 by 20 square metre artificial turf pitch and a modern building housing a lecture room, counseling room, library, HIV aids test room and offices.
Source Tanzania Daily News
