East Africa Cup wins sports peace prize

"It is fantastic to receive this acknowledgement. In East Africa Cup we connect people through sports and creates a foundation for communication," says Vegard Holm in Christian Sports Contact (KRIK).

Working with young people
Speaking more about the impact of the project he said we feel that we have managed to create something important by having organizations in north and south pull together in the same direction. To work with young people you have to meet them at their own arenas, and that is what East Africa Cup is doing. The Cup is not only about sports.

No teams can participate in the cup unless they can show other activities such as work on awareness and mobilization in addition to sports. It is one week in Moshi and a whole year in the local community, says Liv Tørres, secretary general of Norwegian People’s Aid (NPA).

Eight countries
The East Africa Cup is funded by Norwegian People’s Aid, KRIK, Norway, Mathare Youth Sports Association and CHRISC. This summer nearly 2000 youths from eight countries participated in the cup. They also participate in AIDS awareness, conflict management, sports technic competence, coach development and first aid.

Developing media skills
Liv Tørres also highlighted that they are co-operating with BBC to develop media skills in East Africa by using modern web based tools. This is one of the most prestigious awards when it comes to sports and development, supported by UN, IOC and UNESCO.

Watch the short version of the video here.