Introduction
To commemorate the International Day of Sport for Development and Peace, Karim Adeyemi Foundation organises an annual essay competition to inspire young minds to explore the transformative power of sports. Football, a thematic focus of the Foundation, is highlighted as a vehicle for promoting unity, social inclusion, and peace. The 2023 KAF IDSDP Essay Competition saw over 40 secondary school students across Oyo State participate, with Ajala Faheezah from Oladipo Alayande School of Science (OASOS), Ibadan, emerging as the winner. Her essay exemplifies the profound impact football can have on society. Ajala, then a Senior Secondary 2 student, was awarded a scholarship, writing materials, JAMB and WAEC fees valued at ₦300,000, along with a cash prize of ₦200,000. We are proud to feature her winning essay below.
Football and Its Role in Promoting Social Inclusion and National Peace
By Ajala Faheezah, SS2, Oladipo Alayande School of Science (OASOS)
Football is a game where eleven players become one with the aim of winning. Football can be used in promoting social inclusion and national peace in many ways. Football as a game isn’t played by just an individual, it is a game that works with teams, thus, making it possible for participants to socialize with one another physically and mentally.
Football is the world’s most popular sport in the number of participants and spectators. Many people enjoy playing and watching the game, bringing many people together to know one another and raise the flag of peace, since the game prohibits anything that detests peace.
Furthermore, football is simple in its principal rules and regulations and essential equipment, sport can be played almost everywhere, anywhere, from official football playing fields (pitches) to the gymnasiums, streets, school’s playground, parks, or beaches. This means it is a game that can be found in many societies. It brings children and adults, Muslims, Christians, Yoruba, Hausa, Igbo of different homes together to know each other and they discuss what will bring better solutions to their community, religion, and nation at large. They learn from each other and have a better mindset about one another.
Similarly, football is a game that provides work opportunities to journalists, as many people are interested in knowing what is happening in the football world, cleaners, who take care and ensure the stadium is always clean, engineers who build and maintain the stadium, medical practitioners who treat injured individuals (players) and many more. This brings many people of different professions to work together and make peace reign.
In addition, football has a natural way of uniting people in the stadium as spectators, in a bus as passengers, in a community open field as members of the community, or just a passerby, in a school team where juniors and seniors come together as a team. In a national team where players come from different states, ethnic groups, tribes, and religions, football is a game that turns strangers into friends, thereby promoting unity.
In conclusion, football is a game that lets you see reason in unity (a player can’t win a match alone, he needs to pass to other players). It allows you to know the true meaning of “never giving up,” it makes you understand that a day can be for you and another day against you (victory and loss), it allows you to support others even if you won’t gain anything. Football puts one on the road of pain, love, strength, unity, focus, belief, and achievement.
Conclusion
Ajala Faheezah’s essay provides an insightful look into how football transcends the boundaries of race, religion, and social status to foster peace, unity, and community development. Karim Adeyemi Foundation proudly celebrates her achievements and will continue to support young minds who believe in the power of sports as a unifying force. Football, beyond being just a game, is a bridge that connects diverse groups and promotes the values of teamwork, inclusion, and peace in our society.
