It all started with a chance of faith. In 1997 Anneke Meijer from The Netherlands spent her holiday in The Gambia. There she met Baboucarr Cham and Modou Sowe: two Gambian men who tried to do something positive in the slums they were living in. For 15 years they had been voluntarily training a children’s football team from the poor area New Jeswang (Shanghai). Anneke was touched by this initiative. She joined the duo and together they are now trying to make a Gambian dream come true. “Our dream is to really make a difference in this neighbourhood”, Anneke says. “We want to use football to improve the social environment and social status of the children within and around the football field.”
The idea has now grown to be a foundation: UNITY for KIDS. Besides football the foundation is taking initiatives for other sports like volleyball and basketball. UNITY for KIDS also provides financial sponsoring for children so they can have a good education, good nutrition and healthcare.