Sport and the Youth: Mentorship through Basketball

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It was lights, camera & basketball on the 29th of October at Girls High School, in Harare, Zimbabwe. Over 30 different schools came together for a day of mentorship through a sport they passionately love – basketball. The sport mentorship session saw Higherlife Foundation and its partner Hoops4Hope (an organisation that is invested in social impact through sport) provide the young players with a platform to learn life skills that inspire and develop them into versatile future leaders that have a balanced outlook on life.

The mentorship session not only brought together talented young basketball players from across Zimbabwe to share their love for basketball while engaging in uplifting and inspiring activities that promote their personal development and leadership capability, but also acted as a vehicle for instilling hope in the players to see the sport not as a privilege but as a means to breaking out of their own limitations or circumstances and change their lives for the better.

Throughout the day talented young basketball players engaged in healthy competition with their peers in a series of games. By bringing together different players from across the country, the basketball games were truly a physical manifestation of the words of National Basketball Association (NBA) Vice president and Managing Director Africa, Amadou Gallo Fall, who said “Basketball is a vehicle for the growth we all want to see because it brings people together,” at the NBA Innovation Summit earlier this year.

The future of Africa is in its youths and this calls for the cultivating of the young leaders through platforms that capture their attention and imagination and instils in them a sense of curiosity beyond what’s possible, and encourage them to achieve what seems impossible. Through sports such as basketball we give youths a platform to channel their passion for basketball and what they learn on the court to become “productive adults, engage in healthy lifestyles, manage life’s challenges, and become leaders within their communities and the world.”

The day also saw Higherlife Foundation Head of Strategic Initiatives, Ruvimbo Nyangoni, who is also a Higherlife Foundation mentor, speak to the young players on making the most of their talents. A passionate leader and reputable Global Shaper with the World Economic Forum, Ruvimbo Nyangoni, led a question and answer session on motivation and life skills that left the young attendees asking for more. The session saw many of the young leaders express their own vision and aspirations of the future.

Through collaborative relationships with Hoops 4 Hope, Higherlife Foundation provides education opportunities and mentorship to vulnerable youths who are talented in basketball. The foundation focuses on the holistic development of its beneficiaries by fostering positive physical, social and emotional health.

Learn more about the mentorship programs here: Hoops For Hope


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