Tools sport and poverty

Introduction themes

The local level

Models' under discussion under this theme are: local sports clubs or associations, sports structures in refugee camps, omni-sports structures, youth organisations, schools, churches and other community based organisations offering sports or sports related activities. It is important to find out what is likely to work and what is not in a certain context, which factors facilitate and hamper sustainable development, and whether these factors can be influenced. The perspective is bottom up. The primarily focus is not how to relate the local level to the supra-local level, even though this is an essential element when aiming to achieve sustainable development.

Tools for Local level

'Club development program: Evening for the Future' shares some ideas for an evening session to strengthen a sports club ( word)
'Leadership rewards' presents a list of practical considerations collected by MYSA, how to award prices that stimulate sporters to be engaged to keep the organisation going ( word)
ILO's 'Common framework for local development and sport in Mozambique' illustrates which actors are active in what field and at what level, thus providing inspiration for depicting institutional settings elsewhere as well ( ppt)

The (inter-)national level

To increase success, it is important to study experiences in co-operation between the different levels, and particularly in decentralisation to the local level. A local authority or a local sports-for-all movement can for example be the local level. The issue here is: How can a national domestic, national foreign or international organisation best relate to this reality? The difficulties and successes of these higher levels, in assisting the basic level are here the focus. This theme is concerned with the difficulties to sufficiently adapt support to the local level, while holding on to own policy priorities or (even more difficult) to truly start at the local level. Evidently, the possibilities and restrictions that play at that local level need to be taken in account, and thus the local perspective will be incorporated too.

Tools for (Inter-) national level

Toolkit National Policy Evaluation: This folder notably presents a toolkit in response to the 'World Programme of Action for Youth (WPAY) to the year 2000 and beyond'. It is an extensive Youth toolkit, with many possible links and applications to sports ( pdf)
The 'ILO tool national and local level' is especially helpful in analysing the institutional setting on who does what at various levels in the sports arena. It can therefor be applied at local level as well as at (inter)national level ( ppt)

Capacity development

Different projects and examples need to be discussed to find out in which context which train the trainer program is likely to work or not, which factors can facilitate or hamper development and how programmes can be improved and become sustainable and locally embedded.

Tools for Capacity building

Tool sustain the trainer gives a synopsis in powerpoint on critical success factors for empowering trainers programmes ( ppt)
Capacity building HA and Capacity building MDF HA give a systematic overview on how to incorporate capacity building in sport and development programmes ( word)
The 'Facilitators Resource Manual' (developed among others by the Norwegian Olympic Committee, published in 2004) presents a variety of methods to involving children and youth in developing their sports initiatives, covering issues like:

Group process
Analysis the status quo and the desired situation
Making action plans
Evaluation and follow-up

The 'Training Manual for Teachers' based on Ugandan experience, presents ways how teachers and educators can deal with youth with war trauma. It is not a guide for special trauma specialists, but for regular teachers and trainers dealing with children with a difficult background ( pdf)
The 'Volunteer Management Plan Workbook', ( VMP Workbook) developed by Sports and Recreation Victoria (Australia), helps recruit, manage and retain the volunteers that are usually essential to the sports sector.
'Measuring Volunteering Toolkit ' then provides a detailed toolkit on how to measure the contributions that volunteers make ( pdf)
In order to define the capacity of organisations and people to carry out specific projects programmes or activities, two other tools are quite helpful. Organisation assessment assists to look at capacities of organisations. Training needs assessment helps to identify the capabilities of the own human resources

The sustainability issue

Addressing the above three issues on stimulating locally viable structures, which are rightly embedded in society and the larger context with sufficient elements of capacity development is the pro active way of incorporating sustainability in sport and poverty programmes.

You will find that we sub-divided the tools section in this toolkit into the first three levels. Dealing with sustainability requires tools for impact analysis. This is not an action-oriented dimension (to which you may apply practical implementation tools), but more an area of monitoring and evaluation.

In addition to the tools presented in the three sub-folders of this theme (local, national and capacity building), sport development workers active on issue of poverty, may also refer to the generic tools available for project management, programme management, and organisational strengthening (see under themes/tools).

Generic tools

Below, we list a number of generic tools that help to set up a coherent sport development initiatives.

Logical Framework: This tool provides an excellent framework to distinguish the hierarchy of objectives for a sport and development initiative and formulating a project or programme
Problem tree analysis: This is a helpful tool especially to create logical causal relation between issues linking disability and sport initiatives. From the problem tree analysis a logical framework for disability and sport projects or programmes can be formulated
Institutiogramme: This tool is particularly helpful in combination with the coverage matrix to determine who is doing what in the sector and with whom can we possible collaborate in sport and disability initiatives.

Moreover, when you got to best practices, you will find a number of specific examples on sport and poverty introduced. They may not provide a receipt, but at least ample inspiration to develop sports initiatives for poverty alleviation.