Kajiado girls get soccer tournament, sanitary pads to kick-start 2022

On New Year's Eve, many young people engage in various celebrations to usher in the new year.

Some may engage in activities that lead to destructive paths including unwanted pregnancies and substance abuse.

Young girls and women from Kajiado county got a constructive way to celebrate this New Year as they took part in the second annual A Pack A Month 'I Am Priceless' Soccer Tournament.

Jackline Saleiyan, founder of A Pack A Month, said that the tournament is meant to provide an alternative pass time for young girls and women during this festive season.

She said that the tournament creates an opportunity for the girls to also form meaningful friendships and get opportunities to help them in future.

"They are able to form a network of friends from here and when there are issues they cannot share with us their mentors, then they can share with their friends and we can be able to intervene and meet their needs," she said.

The tournament brought together girls' football clubs from around Kajiado to compete for ultimate prize of the Championship trophy and a year's supply of sanitary pads.

"A Pack A Month's main purpose was to end transactional sex for pads in Kajiado by giving the girls and young women pads so, the winners will be sorted for the whole of 2022," she said.

The rest of the teams, Saleiyan said, will also receive sanitary pads to last them for a few months as the organisation keeps on conducting pads drives to help the girls.

The match was organised in partnership with the National Cohesion and Integration Commission as well as the Rotary Club of Ngong Hills.

Kilian Nyambu ,the Deputy Director for Civic Education at NCIC, said that the tournament was also a great opportunity for teaching the youth how to foster peace and spread messages of peace to their various communities in Kajiado county.

"When they are playing football together like this, they are not thinking about which tribe their opponent is or which political affiliation they belong to, all they know is the game," he said.

He expressed his hope that they will carry the same spirit out of the pitch and to the community this election period.

16-year-old Ursula Nasimiyu, Goalkeeper for the Rongai Queens FC, said that there was no place she would rather be on New Year's Eve than at the pitch.

"Here we get to showcase our talents and make friends, not to mention getting free sanitary pads. This is my second time playing in the tournament and I hope we will get to win this year just like we did last year," she said.

Nasimiyu said that 2021 has been challenging to the girls as time for practice was sparse but they managed to find the time between school and housework in order to get in the time to practice.

Saleiyan urged more people and organisations to come in and help organise the annual tournament so that the girls can get more appreciation for their hard work, as well as get more sanitary pads for them.

"Next year, we hope to make the 'I Am Priceless' tournament even bigger with the help of well-wishers who would like to be a part of this initiative to keep our girls safe always," she concluded.

Edited by S. Maombo