The Just Play Festival held at Fuailolo’o Primary School in Mulifanua celebrates the end of six weeks of monitoring and evaluation of teachers conducted in the district.
Football Federation Samoa (FFS) Just Play Project Manager Lynnette Laumea Fa’ai’uaso says the programme in Samoa is continuing to grow.
“We train the teachers on the Just Play Programme because they are the main contact with students in the schools and the children listen to them,” Laumea Fa’ai’uaso says.
“We were able to train eight female teachers and nine male teachers from A’ana 2, they were the ones receiving certificates at the festival, and they become Just Play coaches who can deliver the programme during P.E. sessions at school.
“We use the games in this programme to develop the lifestyle of the child not only in the classroom but also to help them achieve in life.”
Laumea Fa’ai’uaso says the programme, aimed at children between six and 12 years old, aims to introduce the idea of a healthy lifestyle at a young age with the long-term goal of continued exercise and sports participation.
“It’s like an introduction to games and can help a child’s body get fit while they are young, so that when they get older their bodies are used to playing games, especially football.”
Developed by the OFC social responsibility and technical departments, Just Play is designed for children aged six to 12 and promotes physical activity while encouraging community involvement, healthy living, gender equality and disability development.
In Samoa an agreement between FFS and MESC was signed in 2010 for the two organisations to collaborate in its implementation, with the official launch of the programme in June 2010. The programme continues to draw interest as it expands throughout the nation.
“This year we went to the big island of Savai’I and last year we went to Falealili and Safata and also the Samoa Special Olympics,” Laumea Fa’ai’isaso says.
OFC has worked closely with UEFA, the Australian Government – through its agencies the Australian Agency for International Development (AusAID) and the Australian Sports Commission (ASC) – and Football Federation Australia to implement the programme across the Pacific over a three-year period between 2009 and 2012. It was launched in Tonga and is now also running in American Samoa, Cook Islands, Fiji, New Caledonia, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tahiti and Vanuatu.
The confederation has also been working in New Zealand with Special Olympics on a Just Play programme for people with mental disabilities and has launched the same initiative in Samoa and Fiji.
Just Play has reached over 106,000 children – 43 per cent of whom are female – across the Pacific and trained over 2,200 teachers and volunteers.
For more on Samoan football go to www.footballsamoa.ws

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