At Chipper, we believe in making a difference in the communities we serve, and this goes well beyond making it easier for our customers to move money freely. That's why we partnered with Atotos to make a difference in the lives of young aspiring football coaches in Kenya.
Chipper partnered with Atotos Sports in March 2021 to train underprivileged sports coaches in Kenya who displayed strong commitments to their passion. The program provided football training, tools, and long term support to supplement the coaches journey in supporting the lives of thousands of players.
Leon Kiptum, Chipper’s Kenya Country Manager, explains that multiple events had to align for this program to come to fruition:
“I had an unprecedented run-in with the founders of Atotos Sports Management...We happen to have offices in the same building, so it was very coincidental. It is aligned with...our own initiative around [our] AS Roma partnership on developing football in Africa,” said Kiptum, referring to Chipper being the official money transfer app of AS Roma Football Club.
Research has shown overwhelming evidence that youth sports improve the lives of students. The benefits are social, emotional, and physical development through physical activity, friendship building and/or community building, teamwork, following direction, creating routine and discipline, and general developmental skills across all domains.
There is a strong football culture in Nairobi especially in the slums like Kibera, Mathare, Toyoyo, Dandora. The path to football is mostly through non-profit local academies established by ex-players and the main aim is usually to get the kids out of vices such as drugs and crime and unwanted pregnancies, for the girls.
Leon Kiptum
Kiptum explains the existing sports culture in Kenya and how group sport functions to promote wellness there:
The program included, “a 13-day training program split into theory and practical, with a 3 month monitoring period, then a tournament to close. Unfortunately, we shelved the tournament due to COVID,” said Kiptum. Despite this apparent roadblock, the trainers, coaches, and students came together to reap the fruits that their training, and group sports, provide.
Many people had to come together to let this program become what it needed to be: “I ended up playing the role of mentor and motivational speaker to the young coaches,” said Kiptum, “I was invited to speak to them and try to inspire them to dream big”.
Even after the finale of the specific training, we keep in touch with our trainers through, “the three months monitoring done by our partner Atotos through the mobile app created for coaches (Supa Coach App), as they log in their training sessions...they give us regular reports of the coaches progress and their team” said Kitpum. Additionally, Kiptum keeps in touch with some trainers who reach out: “I sometimes get a call from some of the coaches saying they are still at it and it is going well,” said Kiptum.
Not only did the students benefit from skilled soccer coaches, but the coaches also learned, “how to mentor the young kids they will be coaching, and how to manage their finances better, both at a club and personal level,” said Kiptum.
Kiptum’s favorite part of the program was, “Training Day. To just be a part of that whole process was simply exciting as you can see the impact of Chipper on the ground,” he said.
Find out more about Atotos: https://atotossportsmanagement.com