Sport for Development

Project description

Project title: Sport for Development
Commissioned by: German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ)
Country: Palestinian territories
Lead executing agency: Palestinian Ministry of Labour
Overall term: 2014 to 2018

Palestinian territories. Life skills training for young people © GIZ

Context

Ongoing conflict and regional fragmentation in the Palestinian territories have had a negative impact on the education system and economic development in the region. Youth unemployment is particularly high at 40 per cent. Entry into the world of work is made more difficult as a result of the inadequate training opportunities for young people and lack of information about the labour market. Moreover, technical vocational education and training (TVET) has a low level of acceptance, in particular among marginalised youth. For this reason, sustainable economic development and employment promotion are priority areas for German development cooperation in the Palestinian territories.

In order to exploit the potential of sport as a means to achieving development objectives, the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) commissioned GIZ in 2013 to implement the Sport for Development project. This project uses sport as an instrument to raise the appeal of TVET to young people and improve their opportunities on the labour market.

Objective

Sport for Development activities have improved youth empowerment in the labour market in the Palestinian territories and thereby indirectly boosted economic development in the region.

Palestinian territories. Football training with young Palestinians as part of the Sport for Development Programme © GIZ

Approach

Sport for Development cooperates closely in the Palestinian territories with the GIZ programme to promote vocational training and employment.

Sports activities are used to impart personal and social skills and foster positive personality development. This helps to improve the employability of young people and thus indirectly contributes to economic development in the Palestinian territories. The project sets out to increase the appeal of TVET among young people by providing careers information at sporting events and integrating Sport for Development activities into vocational training courses.

With the involvement of civil society organisations and the private sector, the project organises camps geared to sports and vocational training in order to promote TVET and help young people with their career choices. The project places a particular focus on youth from marginalised groups, with a view to creating vocational training opportunities for them and providing information about their prospects on the labour market.

The project conducts workshops to train coaches and sports science graduates in the educational methodologies of Sport for Development, and application of these, for example, to the teaching of social skills and approaches to non-violent conflict resolution.

Palestinian territories. Al Ram Sport & Vocational Training Orientation Day. Alongside sporting activities, the young Palestinians also receive an orientation on the possibilities and options of vocational training. © GIZ

In collaboration with local partners, the project seeks to accelerate the integration of sports courses using the Sport for Development approach in selected vocational education centres in East Jerusalem and the West Bank, with a view to making vocational schools more attractive to young people. The project also undertakes repair and maintenance work to sports facilities.

Youth football tournaments are used as a platform to promote TVET courses and to showcase manual trades at first hand.