Kick4Life, a UK charity backed by the Vodafone Foundation to tackle the AIDS crisis in Lesotho in Southern Africa, announced it had been selected by FIFA to host a sport, health and education centre as part of ’20 Centres for 2010’ campaign.
In 2008, England Manager Fabio Capello visited a Kick4Life event in Lesotho where he witnessed a young boy being tested for HIV. It was here he called upon the world of football to do more in the fight against disease and poverty.
The ‘20 Centres for 2010’ will help increase awareness about HIV/AIDS, increase literacy, improve gender equality, integrate youth with intellectual disabilities and promote development in other targeted ways, leaving a social legacy for the African continent.
Kick4Life have spent the past four years delivering a range of programmes focused on tackling HIV by providing sports-based health education, voluntary testing, life-skills development and support into education and employment.
Steve Fleming, Kick4Life Co-Founder said:
“Being selected as a centre host as part of the official World Cup campaign is a fantastic development for Kick4Life that will provide a first class sports, health and education facility right in the heart of Maseru, Lesotho’s capital. It will enable us to deliver activities to thousands of orphans and vulnerable children in an aspirational setting, and become, we hope, a centre of excellence for the use of football as a tool for social development.”
Capello offered his congratulations at the announcement: “I have seen first hand how Kick4Life is actually changing lives for the better. This summer all eyes will be on South Africa, and it is my hope that we can harness the power of the game to transform the lives of some of the world’s most disadvantaged people, and continue to fight this disease”.
Kick 4 Life is a registered charity funded by The Vodafone Foundation. For more information & to see how you can get involved go to www.kick4life.org.