Watoto Wasoka
Description
Watoto Wasoka is a youth-led non-profit organization turning football into a classroom for learning, health, and joy. Founded in 2009 in Kampala, Uganda, we use the power of play to reach children growing up in urban slums helping them learn, grow, and stay healthy.
Our vision is a Uganda where every child can learn, play, and thrive, regardless of where they are born. Our mission is to transform lives through football-based education that builds skills, wellbeing, and opportunity.
We believe that the football pitch is more than a game field. It is a safe space where children can learn literacy and numeracy, understand health and hygiene, discuss gender equality, and practice teamwork and respect.
Our engagements include community and school-based sessions promoting hygiene and menstrual health, and mental health that build emotional literacy and peer support. Through initiatives such as the Women’s Derby and Slums Derby, we champion girls’ participation, challenge gender stereotypes, and create pathways to leadership and scholarships. By integrating play into education, we reduce school dropouts, delay early marriages, and promote wellbeing for both girls and boys.
Watoto Wasoka is a trusted partner to institutions like the FIFA Foundation, Viva con Agua, and La Guilde, and collaborates with local schools, teachers, and community leaders. We work closely with parents and peers, ensuring sustainability through local ownership.
Our model is simple, low-cost, and scalable. A football, a trained peer leader, and a safe space are enough to start change.
Through membership in GNBU, we seek to contribute our experience in gender-inclusive, play-based learning, collaborate on advocacy to end child marriage, and learn from peers committed to advancing girls’ rights and education across Uganda.
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