After three rewarding days of valuable discussion and brainstorming, the Football for Hope Forum came to a close on June 25th. Representatives from over 100 organisations gathered in South Africa for this inaugural event to build progress in Development through Football and accomplish another milestone for the movement.

In just three extremely busy days, experts, stakeholders, and professionals discussed a range of topics in the field of Development through Football. Successful workshops on football’s role in areas such as leadership, education, gender equality, HIV/AIDS prevention, and peacebuilding constituted the main parts of the forum.

With qualified experts conducting the workshops and training sessions, attendees were able to learn from each other’s valuable experiences. But these formally structured sessions were not the only feature that benefited forum participants.

Meeting the right people
Apart from the discussion panels, training sessions and workshops, attendees at the event were able to meet and interact with important figures representing various influential stakeholders within the Development through Football field. Enouce Ndeche of streetfootballworld network member Vijana Amani Pamoja from Kenya, reflected on the forum’s significance:

“I just want to say THANK YOU so much for giving me and my organization an opportunity to attend the just concluded Football for Hope Forum. [...].Also meeting other networking members was something of great significance as I learnt and exchanged ideas with all the likeminded groups.”

Putting football in Football for Hope
What’s a Football for Hope Forum without some football? After the informative chats and debates, forum attendees were treated to an exciting FIFA Confederations Cup match: the semi-final between Brazil and host South Africa. From the comfort of a hospitality suite at Johannesburg’s Ellis Stadium, the forum attendees watched the host country playing well in a closely contested match. It took a stunning late free kick by Brazil’s Daniel Alves to sink the dream ride of the South Africans.

Good things come in threes (or more)
For some, the three days allotted for the forum were also a springboard for discussing other Football for Hope activities.

Taking advantage of the gathering, the Centre Project Team added two additional workshop days dedicated to the Football for Hope Centres. These important workshops examined information on upcoming developments in the project and provided an opportune time to clearly define roles and further the advancement of the upcoming project.

A workshop for the Football for Hope Festival 2010 took place on Friday, June 26th. In preparation for the upcoming event, the workshop confirmed participating delegations at the festival as well as answered many of the critical questions posed by the participating organisations.

Lessons learned
While the forum may be officially over in South Africa, the work has only just begun. While streetfootballworld is hard at work preparing a follow-up report, various streetfootballworld network members are busy implementing the lessons learned from the workshops and trainings.

In short, the experiences collected from this forum provide an essential foundation for progression in the movement. Following the success of the Football for Hope Forum, the work continues with preparation for the next milestones in this unique method of social development.

Written by Matt Preston