Kick Like a Girl: The project reaching 8,000+ girls in India

WSC: Who is it aimed at and how have you gone about reaching these people?

AR: It is largely aimed at girls from under-served communities in which we work. 

The leadership programme creates female community leaders, role models and mentors for young girls, who are more inclined to join the programme as a result. Football is used as a medium to deliver life skills and age-appropriate gender-based knowledge.

Regular mobilisation and interactions happen with community stakeholders, including parents and guardians.

They’re made aware of the curriculum and the programme, provided with key updates and, most importantly, are encouraged to support girls and let them pursue their interests personally and professionally.

WSC: What does the program involve?

AR: Our programme is a learning environment for both our young leaders and the participants on the ground. 

We give young leaders leadership training on a number of topics, with a focus on sport for development, through a gender lens. 

Once they have completed their training, they assist senior coaches on the ground for key practical experience, before they start mobilising and working with their own batch of adolescent girls. 

They also engage with the community and speak to parents and other key stakeholders to ensure smooth running of the programme. 

Girls attending our sessions can expect a safe space, where they can play and learn with their peers. 

As they develop their football skills, key life skills are also imparted, which include specific, age-appropriate topics on gender, such as menstrual health and hygiene, and sexual and reproductive health and rights. 

Our young leaders become mentors for the girls and help boost their confidence.

WSC: How many girls have been involved?

AR: 8,000 so far.

WSC: That’s a lot! What benefits has the project given them and what has the feedback been like?

AR: We have realised that sport is such an important form of self-expression. When girls have the freedom to play, run around and kick a ball, they are happy. 

Our conversations have encouraged them to think critically beyond the confines of what they were previously led to believe. 

They become an active part of society, they play a role in day-to-day activities and make an important contribution. They are more confident, driven to study further and educate themselves. 

The change in mindset and exposure to new experiences enables them to dream about a better future for themselves. 

Simple things make a difference. For example, a session we conducted on educating girls about their bodies has received such great feedback. 

Girls shared that this cleared a lot of doubts they had, which would have otherwise made them uncomfortable or anxious to address.

WSC: Why is it so important to have this dedicated programme available?

AR: Girls have a completely different set of experiences. They face more hurdles and barriers to entry that restrict them. 

It is important for girls to have their voice and be confident. They can do amazing things when given the opportunity. 

At OSCAR, we are committed to gender equity. We recognise we have to do more to level the playing field for girls, and ‘Kick Like a Girl’ is a response to that need.

A healthy society flourishes when women flourish. We need active participation of girls. There are incredible female leaders today across the world. Why not our girls? 

Their commitment to improving themselves is crucial. It is a team effort and one that has successfully been replicated. 

Our interventions in Rajasthan started with no girls. In fact, we noticed girls were absent from public life in villages we visited. 

However, today, we have 200 female participants and 30 young leaders who have been trained under ’Kick Like a Girl’.

This helps us create a new normal and a cycle of change. That is why OSCAR ensures dedicated programmes are available for girls.

WSC: What are the future plans for the programme?

AR: OSCAR would like to expand to different locations across the country. We want to take our programme to as many children as we can. 

We want to introduce a gender-neutral curriculum that can be implemented with boys and girls. We believe boys and girls should learn about menstrual health and hygiene, and sexual and reproductive health and rights. 

In an effort to scale our project sustainably, we want to partner with governments and work with children from schools. 

We have recently entered a partnership with the government of Daman, Dadra and Nagar Haveli, and Diu, where we train PE teachers on sport for development topics, which they then implement with school children.