NBA Africa and Agence Française de Développement (AFD), France’s public development bank institution committed to financing and technical assistance for projects that improve the lives of people in developing and emerging economies, yesterday launched the “Jr. NBA & AFD Basketball Experience” youth development program in Guediawaye, Senegal.
The Jr. NBA & AFD Basketball Experience, launched in 2021 in Nigeria and subsequently also held in Kenya and Morocco, uses basketball as a platform to promote social inclusion and youth empowerment amongst primary and secondary school children. In Senegal, the program will be operated by nongovernmental organization (NGO) Sports for Education and Economic Development (SEED) Project and feature weekly basketball and life-skills sessions that will educate thousands of Senegalese boys and girls about the importance of physical and mental health, wellness and social cohesion.
As part of the program’s launch in Senegal, NBA Africa and AFD unveiled two basketball courts at The Hamo 4.5.6. Courts in Guediawaye and held a clinic for 150 boys and girls ages 16 and under. The launch was attended by AFD Senegal Country Director Mihoub Mezouaghi; Basketball Africa League (BAL) President Amadou Gallo Fall; NBA Africa Director of Basketball Operations Kita Matungulu; and former NBA player and 2015 FIBA AfroBasket champion Olumide Oyedeji.
“Aware of the potential of sport as a vector of social cohesion, AFD has made it a strategic axis of its action to support the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals,” said Mezouaghi. “It is in this dynamic that our collaboration with the NBA is part of what aims to promote the practice of sport in Africa through the provision of local infrastructure, the professionalization of sports educators and the organization of sports sessions, and education for young people.”
“The collaboration between NBA Africa and AFD continues to grow as we extend this initiative to reach more young people in new countries on the continent,” said Matungulu. “The Jr. NBA & AFD Basketball Experience reflects our commitment to investing in the next generation of African youth and our belief that basketball teaches life lessons like the importance of physical and mental wellness that help children succeed on the court and in life.”
The refurbished courts, part of NBA Africa’s commitment to build 1,000 basketball courts in Africa over the next decade, are expected to benefit thousands of boys and girls from the surrounding communities.
The Jr. NBA & AFD Basketball Experience is part of AFD and NBA Africa’s collaboration to support basketball infrastructure and youth development across the continent and builds on the program’s previous editions in Morocco and Nigeria, and its recent launch in Kenya. To date, the program has reached nearly 90,000 boys and girls ages 12-17 and 460 coaches and physical education teachers.
The Jr. NBA/Jr. WNBA, the league’s global youth basketball participation program for boys and girls, teaches the fundamental skills as well as the core values of the game at the grassroots level in an effort to help grow and improve the youth basketball experience for players, coaches and parents. Jr. NBA/Jr. WNBA programming has directly reached more than 250,000 youth across Africa this year.
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