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Bina Foundation: A model of disability sport development in Nigeria
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a blind footballer dribbles
Since 2017, the Bina Foundation has successfully changed the narratives around disability sports in Nigeria. It has strategically repositioned disability sports development.

Over the years, sport for development programs in Nigeria were modelled to favour able-bodied athletes, many of whom have received different medals both in the national and international sporting events. But people with disabilities were not given the same opportunities in sports, and disability sports was left far behind.

A report from the European Journal of Special Education Research Volume 2, Issue 5 (2017) pointed to the high level of neglect of disability sports in universities in Nigeria. It highlighted the failure of well-structured organizations, either public or private, to come up with a strategic inclusive plan for disability sports development in Nigeria. 

Thus, the Bina Foundation for people with special needs was established, to bridge this gap in Nigeria. Since 2017, the foundation has successfully changed the narratives around disability sports in the country. It has strategically repositioned disability sports development.

Projects: Blind football, goal ball and para-powerlifting

Prior to the establishment of Bina Foundation, there was no organization that promoted blind football and goal ball in the country. The idea for their establishment was an idea by the President-Founder of Bina Foundation, Lady Ifeoma Atuegwu. To ensure the viability of these programs, baseline studies were carried out and collated. 

The Bina Foundation Blind Football Project was inaugurated on 12 April 2017 at the field in Union Secondary School in Awkunanaw, Enugu state, Nigeria. The men’s blind football team was first established – the success of their team paved the way for the establishment of other disability sports by the foundation the same year. Following the President’s quest for gender inclusivity, Bina Foundation’s women’s blind football team was introduced on 17 June 2017, also in Enugu. 

The foundation also purchased plots of land in Enugu the same year to build the Blind Football Academy, which was inaugurated on 9 June. The academy hosted the inaugural summer Blind Football Camp and Training for male and female blind football players from across the federation, held from 9 June to 17 September.

In 2018, the foundation facilitated the formation of five men’s and two women’s blind football teams, to accommodate the growing number of participants in the 2018 summer Blind Football Camp.

In 2019, the foundation partnered with the Para-Athletics Federation in Nigeria to organize the first national blind football trials in Enugu, held in January. We also co-sponsored the Nigeria women’s blind football players who participated in the 2019 International Blind Sport Association (IBSA) Blind Football Women’s Camp and Games in Saitama City, Japan.

The same year, we hosted the African Blind Football Camp and Games for women, men and children, in which four countries, including Cameroon, Ghana, Ivory Coast and Nigeria, participated. We also hosted the 2019 IBSA Blind Football African Championship, held between 22 November and 1 December 2019.

 

Overcoming challenges

In order to establish blind football, goal ball and para-powerlifting projects in Nigeria, we faced many challenges, the first of which was the task of assembling young visually impaired men and women from various hard-to-reach communities and special schools across the country. Another challenge was acquiring the resources needed to build the program, including catering to the athletes’ food, transportation and medical needs.

We also needed to acquire tools and equipment to successfully set up the project, and this was a challenge because equipment for para sports like blind football are not easily available in the country. The management team also had to locate grounds for training and accommodating the players. Further, the administrative bottlenecks in various ministries and agencies responsible for sports development made the registration of our project an uphill battle.

Bina Foundation model of disability sports development

The foundation has been successful because it adopted a bottom-up approach to the process. The approach was modelled to suit our unique circumstances. This included finding local producers of blind football equipment, since imported ones were costly, the training of players and coaches, and training or guards and medical personnel.

The foundation was committed to delivering on our mission, vision and objectives. We also held many negotiations and collaborations with national and international organizations and agencies, which contributed to the impacts of the foundation. This included successfully including blind football as a para-sport in Nigeria, enlisting Bina Foundation as the Nigeria representative to the IBSA, establishing a national men’s blind football team (Star Eagles of Nigeria) and a national women’s blind football team (Star Falcons of Nigeria).

More effort is needed in order to actualize UN-CRPD and the UN SDG 3 by 2030 across all boards of disability sport development. Accessibility and inclusion in sports development are yet to reach a greater percentage of persons with disabilities, especially in developing countries. It is, therefore, very crucial for sports development organizations to look inward and engage disabled people in decision making, in line with the universal principle of “nothing about us, without us”.

Further, many of the disability sports are not getting desired media publicity and it is important to also push for adequate media coverage and support for speedy promotion and development of such disability sports locally and globally. 

As long as there is commitment and passion exhibited by sports development enthusiasts and other relevant bodies, a great future lies ahead for disability sports development. In the future, we hope more persons with disabilities will come into the limelight and make promising careers in disability sports.

Find out more about Bina Foundation by visiting their website.

[This article has been edited by the Operating Team].

Tags

Country
Nigeria
Region
Africa
Sport
Football (Soccer)
Sustainable Development Goals
10 – Reduced inequalities
Themes
Target Group
Persons with disabilities

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