A day of fun and learning on the AFC football pitch for refugee students

11 April 2018 - Rohingya refugee youths from the JREC Refugee Learning Centre emerged victorious in a football match against staff of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), during a friendly game set up by AFC as a way of assessing the youths’ progress in football skills. This was held at the AFC Football Field in Kuala Lumpur.

AFC and UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency in Malaysia had entered into an agreement in June 2017 to utilise football as a tool for social development among refugee communities in the country.

As part of this partnership, for several months, volunteers from AFC had provided football coaching to students from JREC Learning Centre.

This match, held on 27 March, was organised by the AFC volunteers to assess the students’ football skills and how well they retained what they learnt, to help them gain experience of playing competitively on a professional football pitch, and help them learn team spirit and healthy competition. AFC was also keen to provide the students an opportunity to venture safely from their usual community and visit the AFC house.

The AFC - UNHCR Malaysia cooperation is held under the auspices of the AFC Dream Asia Foundation. Within this agreement, both organisations will engage in a two-phase project to utilise football as a tool for social development, which involved health and education components. The health components involved promoting health through activities in the classroom, reinforced through football on the field.