Poverty Alleviation Warriors - They take no prisoners!

Photo: Emil Lyders and Jennifer Huxta

The most important people at the GGWCUP is our teams! We never get tired of telling stories about all the amazing women who come together from all corners of the world, 
This is the story of the awe inspiring team of Ugandan business women and lawyers who heard about the Global Goals World Cup, and decided to find a way to be part of the lineup in Nairobi. Along with Team Net Impact, also from Uganda, they showed up, and showed us something, that we just cannot get enough of at the Global goals World Cup: They showed us grown women, playfully throwing themselves into the game. Fully owning their power to change the world –Today!

Whenever we start feeling a bit despondent and impatient. Unsure if the world has what it takes to reach the Global Goals by 2030. We are reminded that there are women like Jenipher Nakiyemba and her team all over the world, accelerating progress, creating the future they want - now.

After the games we caught up with team captain and social entrepreneur Jenipher Nakiyemba for a few questions:

Q: What made you decide to participate in the GGWCUP?

Our participation was a self initiative to represent our country in the Global event, with a passion to voice out our concerns about the SDGs. Innovatively using soccer to mobilize the masses for raising awareness, holding duty bearers responsible and accountable.

Q: Who is on your team, and how did you come together?

My team is composed of ladies from two groups; the Uganda Law Society and UWEAL and  Uganda Women Entrepreneurs Association Limited). So we are colleagues with a common interest but from different regions of the country. 

Q: Why did you decide to play for on goal 1 –No poverty? 

Well, the female lawyers had a passion for Goals 16 & 5, (Peace, Justice and strong institutions and Gender Equality) while the entrepreneurs were more inclined towards Goal 2 & 8. (End hunger and Decent jobs and Economic growth) After a discussion we resolved to goal 1 because it is cross cutting, and because it gives a good leverage to attain all the
SDGs. 

Q: What does reaching the goal mean to you in your everyday lives?

To us “zero Poverty” implies the desired community, with no hunger, ability to afford and access good health services & quality education, ideally all the SDGs attained. Zero poverty is the ideal situation, the Uganda we want the world we want!!!.

Q: What was participating in the GGWCUP like for you?

We the Poverty Alleviation Warriors are proud to have participated in the GGWCup. It was fun to play soccer with a big proportion of my team on the football pitch for the very first time. Yet it is not just playing a game but speaking out on a global cause. It was even more exciting to make history to play in the premier tournament in Africa. Yeah, my team did not win the award that we still miss to go to New York but we don't count ourselves losers. We won because we participated! We won because we took a self initiative to represent our country. We are proud to be part of he global activists, for our faces to appear in the GGWCUP video.
We have set out to continue with the GGWCUP at country level to have an opportunity for the women at the grassroots to participate at least just to let them hear about the Global Goals  and inspire them to be an actor to the achievement of the Goals.

Q: Could you imagine the GGWCUP tournament to be played in Uganda one day? 

YES come to Uganda !!!! Please do.  As already highlighted above the Sky is the limit. You will not regret it. The impact will be ultimately awesome. Even with our limited participation already many institutions, women groups and individuals have already started to appreciate GGWCUP; they feel that they missed the opportunity to participate…

Well, with that kind of invitation, how can we refuse? Let’s Do This! –If you are out there, thinking you would like to be part of brining the Global Goals World Cup to Uganda, let us know. We launch new tournaments once we reach the necessary level of sustainability and local support. 

Contact rr@eirsoccer.com if you want to be part of this.