PSG and KLABU Partner to Bring Sports Centres to Refugee Camps
June 4, 2021
The Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) Endowment Fund, the charitable arm of the sports club in France, and KLABU, previous Beyond Sport Global Award applicants and a non-profit initiative aimed at empowering young refugees around the globe through sport, has announced a multi-year project that will give thousands of refugees an opportunity to access more sports activities.
Together with the full support of UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, they will build sport Club Centres for thousands of refugees and host community young people living in and near refugee camps, the first of its kind to be opened at a refugee camp by a sports club.
“UNHCR is pleased to collaborate in this project to help young refugees to participate in sport activities and strengthen social cohesion with their host communities. Sport gives refugee youth a chance to heal, to be protected and to develop their skills,” said Paolo Artini, UNHCR’s Representative in France.
“Sport is also a universal language, and the personal engagement of great football players is a source of inspiration and hope in a better future for refugees.”
According to UN figures more than 80 million people have been forced to flee their homes globally, and almost half are children. The project aims to unlock the power and job of sport through community-driven projects, which will be kicked off at the largest refugee camp in the world at Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh. The initial goal is to reach 10,000 refugee and host community children, and their family members.
“Through this project, we look to build on the already extensive humanitarian efforts the Club has undertaken overseas. This project has been under development for almost two years now, the road has been long, but we hope the timing of its delivery will be a small yet welcome relief to refugee children, and to the further communities we hope to reach in future,” said PSG Chairman and CEO Nasser Al-Khelaifi.
The Club Centres will be managed by the local community and work as sport libraries, providing the children access to sport kits and equipment. Children can also participate in training sessions and tournaments, watch sport matches together, and enjoy gaming and online connectivity. These Centres will provide a safe space for refugee children and their families, where they’re able to find relief from their hardships.
KLABU founder Jan van Hövell added “This joint effort with refugee communities reduces the isolation of young, overlooked people connecting them with the world at large, through their club, their pride, their KLABU [club in Swahili]. As the first football club to support us in our efforts, we couldn’t have wished for a better partner to make this happen.”
The launch is supported by a global awareness campaign, ‘Defined by Spirit’, to get people to look beyond the narrative of hardship and need for dependency in refugee crises. In an effort to raise proceeds and awareness for the cause, the PSG Endowment Fund, together with KLABU have created a product collection, available for those who want to support the mission.