Collective effort is central to advancing gender equality. In 2023, Common Goal has launched a new chapter of Equal Play Effect, this time in Africa, led by Common Goal, Moving the Goalposts Kilifi and Soccer Without Borders Uganda, and funded by the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH, on behalf of the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ).


How it drives change: 

• In the organisations: Embed gender equality at the heart of sport for development organisations and ensure gender equality in their leadership. 
• On the sidelines: Increase the proportion of women coaches and ensure every girl has a woman role model.  
• On the pitch: equal access to opportunities for girls and boys. 
• In the community: Leverage culture and reach to inspire society and transform sports culture into a welcoming and inclusive space for all, transforming gender roles and promoting a positive image of masculinity.
  

The project will establish and facilitate a pan-African network of sport for development and gender equality champions who implement the sport for development approach as a tool for raising awareness about gender equality, transforming gender roles, and promoting a positive image of masculinity. Thereby, equal access to opportunities for girls and boys on and off the pitch shall be unlocked by transforming the sports (for good) ecosystem in Africa through collective action to create more inclusive, safe and equitable spaces for all.

To drive the network and create vivid sub-regional communities, four Regional Hubs are established in North, East, West and Southern Africa who will engage up to 40 participating organisations in the sub-regions in total. Regional hubs will be led by sport for development partners including:

• North Africa: Tibu Africa (based in Morocco)
• East Africa: Soccer Without Borders Uganda (based in Uganda)
• Southern Africa: Kick4Life (based in Lesotho)
• West Africa: Tackle (Based in Côte d'Ivoire / Senegal) 
  

 


About Equal Play Effect

Equal Play Effect is a replicable, adaptable and scalable solution to accelerate progress towards gender equality in football.

Equal Play Effect provides an action-based impact framework to support everyone in football to work against mechanisms and dynamics that enforce inequality and discrimination.

Driven by Common Goal, developed by expert partners Soccer Without Borders and Women Win, and implemented with the support of more than 50 stakeholders across four regions, including athletes, brands, community organisations and others.

From 2020 to 2023, Equal Play Effect has been implemented across four regions including East Africa, North America, Latin America and Europe, under different names.

Learn more about Equal Play Effect here.