Deshi Ballers- Empowering Women Through Basketball in Bangladesh
April 1, 2022
In Bangladesh, a group of trailblazing female athletes is increasing opportunties for women and girls through basketball. Through a series of tournaments and events, they are helping women play at a competitive level while also providing off the court skills to build strong leaders and take on gender bias.
Deshi Ballers is a female-led sport for development organization based in Dhaka, Bangladesh that has created a learning community for women through basketball. Co-founder Ashreen Mrindha started the organization in 2018 with the aim to change the gender-biased system and carry on a legacy of empowerment for the next generation of girls while navigating the country's particularly conservative culture.
As she told the Financial Express: “I have played basketball for more than 20 years now. Not only have I seen the positive benefits that sports have given me in my personal and professional life, I have also seen the darker sides of sports where extreme discrimination exists." Mrindha says that male-dominated sports federations give little priority to female players, and the female national basketball team didn’t have a dedicated female coaching staff, yearlong camps or a league through which its players could showcase their talent.
Through its platform of sisterhood, Deshi Ballers is also educating players on how their bodies react to sports and physical activity. They recently released Breaking Health Myths Surrounding Female Athletes, a series that debunks health myths to further empower their players and challenge stereotypes surrounding women playing sports. It was created in partnership with Plan International who has been working in the country since 1994.
Plan is dedicated to improving access to quality health services and creating safe spaces for Bangladeshi children and young people. According to the organization, the issues affecting children’s development in Bangladesh include a lack of sexual health rights, low-quality education, child marriage, a high number of girls dropping out of school and a lack of safety, especially for girls.
On March 18, Deshi Ballers held its fourth flagship International Women's Day (IWD) basketball tournament on the Gazipur campus of Pledge Harbor International School. The tournament was centered around IWD’s 2022 theme to #BreaktheBias in pursuit of a gender-equal world free of bias, stereotypes and discrimination.
"The day is a time to reflect on progress made, to call for change and to celebrate acts of courage and determination by ordinary women who have played an extraordinary role in the history of their countries and communities. For many years, basketball in Bangladesh has remained an elite, male-dominated sport with severe barriers for female athletes to succeed,” Mrindha explained.
The tournaments have grown significantly over the years. In 2019, it included 12 women’s teams, which increased to 16 in 2020. In 2021, 12 men’s teams were included for the first time and this year, district teams from other areas were included along with new co-ed segments.
“In Dhaka, over the past years, the stigma of women playing sports has died down but it’s still quite prevalent in other areas of Bangladesh," said Zoynob Arak of Team Stallions. "As someone from Chittagong where almost all courts are outdoors, it’s difficult to feel comfortable when it hasn’t yet become the norm.”
With a lack of resources for female basketball players within the country, progress towards gender equality seems unfeasible for some of the Deshi Ballers players. “Female basketball is growing day by day in our country. But many female basketball players don’t get enough resources to prove their potential. But if we actually invest in our female basketball players, we will clearly see the results. They have the potential, they just need a little help from us and higher authorities,” said Zunayed Ahmed from Team Lessgoo.
Source: Financial Express