Children attending a fun football festival were filled with joy at theend of the recent one-day event held in Do Son district of the northerncity of Hai Phong as part of a project by the Football For All inVietnam (FFAV), jointly initiated by presidents of the Vietnam FootballFederation (VFF) and the Norway Football Federation back in 1997.
The FFAV moved to Hue in 2004 and began its operations in Do Son in2007. According to its website, the FFAV has managed to create 148 clubswith 1,659 teams and 15,956 players. It also hosts 300 tournaments ayear and educates 4,537 people.
This year, hundredsof children from Hop Duc and Minh Duc communes in Do Son were able toparticipate in five hours of activities.
Accordingto Hoang Trung Hieu, director of the FFAV's programme in Do Sondistrict, after six years in the district, the number of clubs hasrapidly swelled from two to nine big clubs and 21 small clubs.
With just balls and some simple objects, the FFAV's dedicatedinstructors created a wide range of games to help children learn skillsas well as increase their knowledge.
Children can joinin football matches or partake in drills combining thinking exerciseswith football skills. They can also dribble a ball to take pieces ofpaper with words and arrange these into a meaningful order; or head theball into circles with different terms referring to good or bad aspectsof society.
"This kind of event is invaluable andhelps to educate children about football skills as well as life skills,"said Vu Trong Loi, head of the National Sports Administration's PopularSports Department.
"The event also serves as acatalyst to encourage children to participate in community activitiesthrough which they can acquire knowledge and practical skills. Moreevents like this will be held in other provinces in the future."
The course is supplied at a very low cost and sometimes self-run bylocals. Along with its own creative ideas, the FFAV can reach childrenin rural areas for minimal expenses.
"I saw a lotof different exercises here and how you use these to teach these boysand girls not only how to play football but how to be educated in aproper manner," said Wilfried Lemke, special adviser to the SecretaryGeneral on Sport for Development and Peace, after finishing a 30-minutefootball match with children.
Lemke said he was notdisappointed to travel for three hours from Hanoi to attend the event,which he described as providing value, engagement, organisationalskills, good-behaviour and a good environment.
"I amvery pleased to see this project by NGO FFAV in Vietnam. I always focuson grassroots-level sports where children learn how to behave, that'spart of education," Lemke said.
Pham Duc Dai, asecondary school student who has participated in the event two years in arow, said that participating in the event had helped him learn teamworkand social skills.
"We do not have many events ofthis kind which allow all children in the commune to meet, play andsocialise. I want it to be held more often," Dai said.
Dai's wish is also what Lemke wants to bring to rural children acrossVietnam. Lemke hopes other provinces and cities will replicate or learnfrom the model the FFAV is implementing in Hue city and Do Son.
"It is a question of content and support. This initiative has to besupported. With support from the government, the work will be mucheasier," he said.-VNA
The FFAV moved to Hue in 2004 and began its operations in Do Son in2007. According to its website, the FFAV has managed to create 148 clubswith 1,659 teams and 15,956 players. It also hosts 300 tournaments ayear and educates 4,537 people.
This year, hundredsof children from Hop Duc and Minh Duc communes in Do Son were able toparticipate in five hours of activities.
Accordingto Hoang Trung Hieu, director of the FFAV's programme in Do Sondistrict, after six years in the district, the number of clubs hasrapidly swelled from two to nine big clubs and 21 small clubs.
With just balls and some simple objects, the FFAV's dedicatedinstructors created a wide range of games to help children learn skillsas well as increase their knowledge.
Children can joinin football matches or partake in drills combining thinking exerciseswith football skills. They can also dribble a ball to take pieces ofpaper with words and arrange these into a meaningful order; or head theball into circles with different terms referring to good or bad aspectsof society.
"This kind of event is invaluable andhelps to educate children about football skills as well as life skills,"said Vu Trong Loi, head of the National Sports Administration's PopularSports Department.
"The event also serves as acatalyst to encourage children to participate in community activitiesthrough which they can acquire knowledge and practical skills. Moreevents like this will be held in other provinces in the future."
The course is supplied at a very low cost and sometimes self-run bylocals. Along with its own creative ideas, the FFAV can reach childrenin rural areas for minimal expenses.
"I saw a lotof different exercises here and how you use these to teach these boysand girls not only how to play football but how to be educated in aproper manner," said Wilfried Lemke, special adviser to the SecretaryGeneral on Sport for Development and Peace, after finishing a 30-minutefootball match with children.
Lemke said he was notdisappointed to travel for three hours from Hanoi to attend the event,which he described as providing value, engagement, organisationalskills, good-behaviour and a good environment.
"I amvery pleased to see this project by NGO FFAV in Vietnam. I always focuson grassroots-level sports where children learn how to behave, that'spart of education," Lemke said.
Pham Duc Dai, asecondary school student who has participated in the event two years in arow, said that participating in the event had helped him learn teamworkand social skills.
"We do not have many events ofthis kind which allow all children in the commune to meet, play andsocialise. I want it to be held more often," Dai said.
Dai's wish is also what Lemke wants to bring to rural children acrossVietnam. Lemke hopes other provinces and cities will replicate or learnfrom the model the FFAV is implementing in Hue city and Do Son.
"It is a question of content and support. This initiative has to besupported. With support from the government, the work will be mucheasier," he said.-VNA
