Enhancing Livelihoods of Youth football clinic
The NGO NCC Inc in partnership with Vurlon Mills Football Academy Inc. , SBM Offshore Guyana & ExxonMobil Guyana supports NCC’s access to young students through sports activities in the Cummings Lodge/Sophia community.
Background
During the Prosperity FPSO mooring lines installation campaign executed by the SBM Installation Vessel Normand Installer, over about 12 weeks (from June to Sept ’22 approx.), each safety observation card raised a budget of 25$ was allocated. This budget was raised to 35$ in the last phase.
Considering the 784 cards raised, the overall budget acquired was approx. $22500. The budget has been then split in 2 and allocated to 2 different programs, one in Trinidad as part of the Project executed in Trinidad – Chagterms Yard) to support the JBF Pediatric Centre and one in Guyana to support NGO National Coordination Coalition is support access to the young student to sports activity in the cummings community.
Outcomes
The program in Guyana is conducted twice per week in two sessions with certified football coaches from the Vurlon Mills Academy. The children were provided with all gears including boots, protective pads, pants, tops, bibs and balls , while the cones and other training essentials were procured as part of this project. Liquids throughout the sessions and snacks afterwards are all part of this experience for the girls and boys.
It is the plan that this project will serve as a catalyst to elevate qualities like discipline, determination, and teamwork, and promote social growth for underprivileged students. Most of the participants are enrolled in the literacy program ran by the NCC this component will add to a rounded learning and empowering approach.
Enhancing Livelihoods Youth Literacy Programm
The Literacy/Numeracy Project aims to address education gaps among the target population, which have been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. With the help of SBM Offshore, the educational gap will be bridged, and students who previously didn’t have the opportunity will now be able to engage in tutored learning more easily. This is especially necessary for students who were already struggling before the disruption of face-to-face classes. The heavy expectation on students and parents to take a more active role in self-learning and monitoring progress has been a daunting task, especially for those with limited resources and capabilities, and no access to personal computers or the internet at home.
There is existing evidence that cost-effective methods, primarily centered on children and families, including early childhood education, and school-based violence prevention programs, can offer solutions to and act as bulwarks against negative activity. Notably, these methods need to be complemented with effective mentoring approaches, especially at the local level to combine modern prevention methods.
In July 2018, the NCC conducted a pilot survey in the Sophia/Cummings Park community to determine the views of residents on matters crucial to improving their lives. Key issues raised included unemployment, school dropouts, numeracy and literacy degeneration, and the need for life skills coaching. Observation exercises carried out in sections of the community recorded various groupings of older and young men spending multiple hours playing games of dominoes or cards for money. This behavior was often in plain sight of children and young boys and appears to be mirroring a social norm observed among boys between the ages of nine and twelve.
In the classic “Bobo doll” studies by Albert Bandura, the lead scientist behind these studies determined that children and adults learn from others in their environment how to behave. In terms of aggression, it is not enough to tell children to be peaceful or explain why they should be; they must see adults behaving peacefully. Children will mimic this behavior and become more peaceful themselves. They will model their behavior after the adults they have seen behaving in a certain way.
