Outcomes of the project so far (July 2012):
150 kids accessing the centre each week
200 girls recruited for football league at the centre
6 youth trained as HIV testing and counselling counselors
579 Male and 478 Female counseled and tested on HIV/AIDS
120 boys and 108 girls recruited to the library program
59 youth trained on entrepreneurship and basic computer training
Generating income from the centre

The centre is opened!

The Mathare Football for Hope Center, completed in 2010, unifies the group of buildings that make up the Mathare Youth Sports Association (MYSA) campus. Constructed as part of FIFA’s 20 Centers for 2010 campaign, the Football for Hope Center brings together public health, education and football to increase awareness and education for African youth in disadvantaged areas. For over 25 years, MYSA, run by the youth for the youth, has empowered African youth to develop healthy lifestyles and to become engaged citizens and stewards of environmental preservation. The functional, sustainable, and cost effective Football for Hope Center provides MYSA with a community space for gatherings, education, community service, sports, and leadership development. The new campus includes a central commons anchored by the Football for Hope tower, a covered outdoor classroom with stepped seating that overlooks the football field, and a community center with multifunctional rooms, counseling rooms, and an internet café. The orientation, lighting, ventilation, temperature control, materials, and water management system were designed to minimize energy requirements and environmental impact of the building during its construction phase and lifetime. The contrasting neutral stone façade and brightly colored interior reflects the natural resources of the Kenyan landscape and the vibrancy of Kenyan culture. The flat roof will allow safe and easy future expansion without the need to encroach on surrounding land. The Mathare Football for Hope Center provides youth with a place to develop the self-esteem they need to lead their communities into a brighter future.
http://www.mysakenya.org/

About the Campaign:
“20 Centres for 2010” is the Official Campaign of the 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa™. Its aim is to raise funds to create twenty Football for Hope Centres for public health, education and football across Africa. The centres will address local social challenges in disadvantaged areas and improve education and health services for young people. Read more about The Football for Hope Campaign.

Location: Komarock – Nairobi, Kenya
Centre Host Organisation: Mathare Youth Sports Association (MYSA)
Mission: Linking Sports, Community Leadership and Sustainable Development in Africa by: Creating opportunities for physical, personal and community development; Empowering young people and building their self-esteem; Empowering young people to become responsible citizens and environmental preservation experts.
Target population: Girls and boys ages 10-18 years
Football-based programmes since: 1987
Network Member since: 2002

About the Centre Host:
One of the leading organisations within the Development through Footballcommunity, MYSA celebrated its 20th anniversary in 2006. For the past two decades, the Nairobi-based organisation has grown to include 60 staff members and over 7,000 volunteers. MYSA is making great strides toward helping youths become responsible citizens and develop healthy bodies and spirits. Activities of the organisation include providing training and organising tournaments within the 16 most deprived slums of Nairobi. Youths are involved in leadership training, environmental cleanups, HIV/AIDS awareness programmes, and other community service activities.

In cooperation with participating schools, MYSA has also devised special curriculum for training teachers who are encouraged to incorporate the organisation’s positive message and methods into their school’s agenda. The organisation involves approximately 20,000 young people, of which over 14,000 youths are currently participating in the football programme. MYSA participated at the streetfootballworld festival 06 in Berlin, Germany, and was crownedStreet Football World Champion!

Design Intent by Studio 610:
Studio 610’s is very excited to be involved with the 20 Centers for 2010 campaign. It is our goal to provide a space that is functional, sustainable, cost effective, and that will become a beacon where the community can come together.

The MYSA campus is a large group of buildings with multiple scales and functions. The new Football For Hope Centre will bring all of the structures and spaces together to allow for a central meeting space and community center.

Our design inspiration was to provide a central commons area focused on the existing MYSA sculpture,and anchoring it with the FFH Tower. Next to the commons is a covered outdoor classroom with stepped seating that overlooks the new small sided football pitch. Both of these spaces sit adjacent to the main community center building.

The community center building is a durable and versatile structure that will house many of the centers activities. The primary structure is formed by local stone masonry with zero jointing. The stone is kept a natural color symbolizing the nature of Kenya and the interior walls are painted bright colors to symbolize the heart and vibrancy of the Kenyan culture. During the day, and especially at night, the color will radiate from the interior through the large glass walls glowing like a multicolored lantern. The building’s flat roof is an ideal location for solar panels and will allow for easy rainwater collection.

In addition, the reinforced roof will be the perfect location for future expansion without taking up the valuable land within the community. The interior of the building has been design for maximum flexibility with multifunction room that have large glass folding doors which, when open, can combine the interior space with the exterior. The large multifunctional space can be divided easily to provide more appropriate sized rooms for smaller groups. The hall links the counseling rooms and cyber cafe to the multifunction room, and also creates a buffer of space to help with privacy. The door at the end of the hall leads to the small sided soccer pitch which will provide easy access from the pitch to the medical room.

The two containers from Greenfields are used for the construction of the tower, or modified and incorporated alongside the football pitch in a ‘dugout’ style as a partially open shaded structure for teams to gather, change, and use as storage.

Sustainability Statement by Studio 610:

Recycling – the shipping container used for transporting Greenfields turf to site will be reused as the tower element

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