“Sport and Education are valuable tools in giving our children and youth a platform to a healthy, fit life and full of self esteem”. 

For the first time, the Just Play Program has now reached the other side of Upolu.

20 participants from 14 Primary schools in the Fagaloa and Anoama’a Districts were present at the Just Play teacher’s course on Tuesday 2nd August and Wednesday 3rd August 2016 which focused on training the teachers on how to prepare, organize and deliver Just Play sessions and coach children between the ages of 5-12 in their respective schools. The Just Play teacher’s course has now completed and the teachers will be monitored and evaluated by the Just Play team for 16 weeks. 

Just Play Project manager and local instructor Lynette Fa’aiuaso conducted the two day course with the assistance of Talitiga Tumanuvao, FFS Just Play development officer. Local partners including representatives from the Ministry of Police, and Special Olympics of Samoa delivered and presented at the Training. 

The Just Play Program is a development program that addresses social issues in the Pacific such as child abuse, gender inequality, non-communicable diseases and exclusion of persons with disability. Each football-related activity from the programme focuses on reducing one of these issues, and in turn promotes child protection, healthy lifestyles, gender equality and social inclusion of persons with special needs.

The Just Play Program was established by the Oceania Football Confederation in 2009. It was implemented specifically to promote physical activity for children between the ages 6 to 12 years and at the same time enable them to enjoy and learn more about football (soccer). An agreement between the Ministry of Education, Sports, and Culture (MESC) and Football Samoa (FFS) was signed in May 2010 to enable the two to collaborate in the development of this program. It was officially launched in Samoa in June 2010.

Just Play is working alongside with the Australian Government, the New Zealand Government, the Australian Football Federation, UNICEF and the UEFA Foundation for Children, Ministry of Education Sports and Culture, Ministry of Police, Special Olympics Samoa and Nuanua O Le Alofa (NOLA).