CWB launches new partnership with MYSA (Mathare Youth Sports Association), Nairobi, Kenya

On Saturday 11th February, CWB Lead Tutor, Daniel Feist and CWB Kenya Country Manager, Tracey Davies took to Mathare, Nairobi (one of Kenya's many slum area's) to work with MYSA, an organisation that supports the slum communities of Mathare and surrounding areas. MYSA have up to now being largely focused on Football, with CWB's involvement MYSA can now offer Cricket as part of their programme, giving the people of the local community another option of something hugely to engage in. Not only has CWB brought the sport of Cricket to the Mathare, Nairobi area, but also the HIV/AIDS awareness messages through cricket coaching that is inherit in the ethos of CWB.

Day 1 with MYSA consisted of Dan and Tracey delivering a Coach Education course to 11 MYSA coaches, which was a great success. Most of the MYSA coaches had never played cricket before, apart from 2 coaches (Kennedy and Harrison) who played at a high level in Kenya. The MYSA coaches very quickly picked up the game of cricket, and how to coach the skills, as well as incorporate the HIV/AIDS awareness messages.

Day 2 with MYSA saw the finishing stages of the Coach Education Course with introduction on how to run a competition, such as Kwik Cricket. The coaches then took turns in umpiring and scoring games so they were prepared to run festivals. We then went to on to a local orphanage where we coached over 50 children, in which the MYSA coaches stepped up to the plate to practice their coaching skills.

Day 3 with MYSA saw various schools coming to take part in coaching sessions, again the MYSA coaches did a fantastic job and by now are ready to run work as cricket coaches in their community.

Day 4 with MYSA – the Kwik Cricket Festival with lots of school children. Now it was time to see if everything the MYSA coaches had learned about umpiring and scoring and running a festival was enough to cope with 100 children all eager to win in the hot Kenya sun – the MYSA coaches rose to the challenge and it was great to see that the time Dan and Tracey and the rest of the CWB team put in to training them how to be coaches and mentoring them through real life practice coaching situations worked, as well as hearing the MYSA coaches shout "Abstain, Be faithful and Protect" and further HIV/AIDS Awareness messages.

The time with MYSA was a great success and CWB look forward to a continued relationship with MYSA, and look forward to how the cricket has gone since CWB's departure.