UNHCR in South Africa partners with FIFA to launch new sports initiative aimed at empowering young refugees and local communities

PRETORIA - UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, has partnered with FIFA, the global governing body of football, on the Tshwaragano-Bambanani project, meaning “togetherness,” to empower approximately 1,000 young refugees and local residents in South Africa through sports activities, promoting social inclusion and cohesion.

The project will be implemented in phases throughout the year and is launched in conjunction with this year's International Day of Sport for Development and Peace, celebrated on 06 April, under the theme "Levelling the Playing Field: Sport for Social Inclusion." This day highlights the transformative power of sport in fostering positive change and breaking down barriers.

Through this three-year partnership, the FIFA Legacy Fund has committed approximately US$ 600,000 to deliver innovative sports activities and technical expertise to increase access to sport and education for refugees, asylum-seekers and local residents.

The partnership between the FIFA Legacy Fund and UNHCR will support existing sports organizations and refugee-led organisations while closely collaborating with UNICEF and the Government of South Africa’s Department of Justice and Constitutional Development.

The initiative builds on the collaboration between FIFA and UNHCR, which started in March 2022, when both organizations united in a global appeal to raise funds for people displaced by the conflict in Ukraine. The partnership between UNHCR and FIFA in South Africa promotes social cohesion, education and youth development.

Welcoming the initiative, UNHCR’s Representative a.i. to South Africa, Mr. Igor Ciobanu stated: ‘UNHCR is excited and grateful to collaborate with FIFA on this new initiative in South Africa. As we all know, sports foster social cohesion through shared experiences and teamwork, and refugees are no exception to this. Sports offer refugees, who have endured hardship and conflict, a renewed sense of belonging and community’.

Many refugee youth in South Africa face significant challenges, including social exclusion, limited access to higher education, and documentation challenges. The Tshwaragano-Bambanani sports project aims to address these issues by supporting South African nationals and forcibly displaced children and youth, across rural, semi-urban and urban areas in three provinces, Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal and the Western Cape.

In addition to this flagship initiative in South Africa, FIFA is generously supporting UNHCR and its partners in providing child protection, addressing gender-based violence, and enhancing education in Eswatini, Namibia, Botswana, and Madagascar.

At a time when aid cuts are affecting millions of people globally this support demonstrates FIFA’s continued commitment to supporting the region’s most vulnerable refugees and the communities hosting them.

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For more information, please contact: 

Tendani Sibuyi, Senior External Relations Associate, +27 60 534 3864, [email protected]

Jan De Bisschop, External Relations Officer, +27837 002267, [email protected]

UNHCR South Africa Multi-Country Office for Botswana, Comoros, Eswatini, Lesotho, Madagascar, Mauritius, Namibia, Seychelles, and South Africa