Embassy of the Netherlands Culture and sports

Introduction
Examples of cultural co-operation

Sports
Sports development programme, Kenya
Sports technical co-operation

Introduction
Culture is one of the pillars of sustainable development. Only people, who are aware and proud of their own cultural background and respectful of others, can fully develop their potential and maximise their contribution to a country's development.

At the same time cultural instruments like music, dance, literature and theatre are not only entertaining, they are also powerful instruments through which important messages on socially relevant themes can be communicated to a wide audience. Concepts like educational theatre have proven to be effective in education and for influencing people's behaviour. In many countries and cultures, subjects like sexual behaviour is still tabooed. Using theatre, puppetry and other cultural instruments, makes it easier in these situations to communicate about e.g. AIDS prevention.

Based on the two principles mentioned above, the Royal Netherlands Embassy supports activities, which can contribute to the preservation of cultural heritage and the strengthening of cultural diversity in Kenya. These activities should be innovative and have a catalysing effect within society. The Embassy furthermore stimulates cultural exchange between the Netherlands and Kenya. This, however, does not include export of Dutch culture. There should always be co-operation with Kenyan groups or individuals and cultural exchange projects should be focussed on development in Kenya.

Examples of cultural co-operation
Some of the projects, supported by the Embassy, have received widespread acclaim. In 1998 a public art project in the Central Business District of Nairobi, the Daily Billboard, provoked massive reactions from people in Kenya as well as visitors to the projects website. Thousands of people participated by writing their reactions to the themes that were artistically displayed on a huge billboard. The project was documented on a website, which has been visited by hundreds of thousands of people. Through the inventor of the project, Dutch painter Rene Klarenbeek, many Kenyans were able to express their opinion to a worldwide audience. (www.nairobits.com).

Have you ever looked at urban slums through the eyes of a young slum dweller? You can do so by visiting www.nairobits.com/projects/mathare/. One of the activities of this huge youth organisation is called Shootback: a project in which young people from the slums document their own life by taking photographs. Shootback has held photographic exhibitions in Norway, United Kingdom, United States, Germany, the Netherlands and Kenya.

The project has also published a book "Shootback" in which the young photographers show their skills and tell about their lives and dreams. Finally, the Embassy supported the creation of Puppets against Corruption; a project which tries to influence the ordinary peoples attitude towards corruption through puppet theatre. The project implementers, Community Health Awareness Puppeteers (CHAPS) have trained numerous puppet troupes in Kenya, and are organising performances on the village level. One of the Chaps troupes was invited to the Transparency International anti-corruption conference in Durban in November 1999. Their performance at the conference was recognised as a very positive contribution to the fight against corruption. Since Durban, CHAPS co-operates closely with Transparency International (Kenya Chapter) and the Kenya Anti Corruption Agency (KACA). These are just some of the projects, supported by the Embassy through its Local Cultural Fund.

If you think you have a good idea and you need some support to realise it, you can send your proposal to the First Secretary, Press and Cultural Affairs.

Sports
Sports are becoming more and more popular all over the world. People's interest in, and enthusiasm for sports, both as active participants, as well as enjoying it as spectator, has made sports into a multi-billion dollar industry. If the whole world is crazy about sports, then it must be possible to channel part of this energy towards development targets as well. In April 1998, the Dutch ministry of Foreign Affairs and Development Co-operation and the ministry of Health, Welfare and Sports, jointly published the policy memorandum "Sports in Development: Teamwork Scores!" which officially recognises sport as a development tool.

Sports Development Programme, Kenya
Based on the new policy on sports in development, the Embassy started a pilot programme in Kenya in December 1998. This programme, located in Nairobi's Mathare slums and Kakuma refugee camp in Turkana, tries to address important issues in both areas using sports as an entry point . Presently, more than 30.000 people actively participate in the Sports Development Programme, Kenya (SDP-K).

The idea behind SDP-K is a very simple one: if you assist in the organisation of sports activities, you can ask participants to do something in return. In Mathare slums, children participating in youth soccer "pay" for this by helping to clean the various slum villages of garbage. In Kakuma, refugees and Turkana participate in soccer, volleyball, basketball, netbal, sports for the handicapped and in-door games, in return for which they help cleaning the environment, plant trees and volunteer to coach other teams. In Kakuma another aspect of life is very important. The refugee community in Kakuma camp is some 70.000 people, comprised of 8 different nationalities. All these people live among thousands of Turkana herdsmen. In order to stimulate mutual understanding and reconciliation, only multi-national teams are allowed to participate in the sports programme. After two years, the programme in Kakuma has already lead to a significant improvement in the security situation in and around the camp. Furthermore contacts among the various communities in the area have increased, reducing the number of conflict between the groups.

Sports technical co-operation
Mainly as an indirect result of the Sports Dvelopment Programme, several sports organisations in Kenya have established contacts with their counterparts in the Netherlands. The National Olympic Committees of both countries have already signed a Memorandum of Understanding regulating their co-operation. Furthermore, the Kenya Football Federation (KFF) and the Koninklijke Nederlandse Voetbal Bond (KNVB) have agreed on a joint framework of activities, meant to increase the levels of football coaching and refereeing in Kenya. Several training courses already took place in both fields. Recognising the significance of the Kenyan-Dutch football co-operation, both countries have been matched by the European Football Confederation, UEFA, in the so-called Meridian programme, through which co-operation between football authorities in European and African countries is supported.

With football and the Olympic committees already formally teamed up, the associations responsible for basketball and volleyball in Kenya and the Netherlands have recently co-operated in training activities in Kenya. Furthermore Dutch athletic agents continue to stimulate Kenyan athletes participation in the European circuit. With a new generation of talented athletes breaking through at present, it is expected that this many more will follow in the footsteps of runners like Paul Tergat and Lornah Kiplagat.

© 2001-2006 Royal Netherlands Embassy in Nairobi, Kenya.