A total of 21 basketball prospects who were participating at a five-day Basketball Africa League for Women (BAL4Her) camp, on Friday, May 31, visited over 150 women and girls from Mayange sector in Bugesera district. The Pan-African basketball camp, which attracted young women from 11 countries, aged between 18-23, is organised by the Basketball African league (BAL) in partnership with FIBA and in collaboration with Shooting Touch Rwanda (STR). ALSO READ: PHOTOS: Ujiri hands over new basketball court to ENDP Karubanda Launched in 2022 by a team of professionals to dedicated to promoting gender equality through sport across Africa, the ‘BAL 4HER’ project aims to close the gender gap in access to economic opportunities and financial resources. Participants for this year’s BAL4HER edition paid a visit to Mayange community young women to inspire them with basketball skill development and health education. During the visit, participants enjoyed a morning of fitness, basketball competition before concluding the activity with education on sexual reproductive health rights (SRHR) and family planning. Marie-Laurence Archambault, Social Responsibility and Player Programs Lead for BAL4Her, told Times Sport that, “Our main responsibility is women’s professionalism on and off the court, but also advocacy by using our platform to promote gender equity and inclusion. It is an opportunity for these young girls to become competitive. They were selected through various camps organised by the BAL, and there is a lot of potential.” In addition to the games, work sessions are organised on sports-related topics. “There are workshops on different subjects like coaching, leadership, and the role of women, as well as training sessions,” she added. Explaining their partnership with Shooting Touch Rwanda, Archambault said, “We can’t do it all alone. STR shares the same vision and has been promoting gender equality through basketball in Rwanda for the past 12 years. Their experience and support are invaluable.” Jane Dusabe, a Rwandan player for The Hoops WBBC, is one of the 21 athletes who took part in the 2024 BAL4HER camp. “This camp helps us a lot as rising stars,” Dusabe said. “We learn not only from the coaches but also from each other because we come from different countries with different cultures and experiences.” The 19-year-old added, “Meeting these young women is something special. We get the chance to share our knowledge about women’s lives and inspire other young, talented girls to keep pushing themselves in their development.” Lorence Mfashije, a mother of four and a Mayange resident, commended BAL4HER for their initiative which goes beyond basketball as it also touches the lives of the community, especially young women. “This is a good and important initiative,” she said. “Playing basketball and discussing sexual and gender equality education at the same time is beneficial not only for young girls but also for older women and parents in general, as some of us don’t understand these issues. We thank the organizers and ask them to prepare more events to reach more young girls and women all over the country.” Founded in 2007, Shooting Touch is an international sport-for-development organisation whose mission is to use the mobilising power of basketball to bridge health and opportunity gaps for youth and women facing gender and economic inequalities.
