June 24:
There are many women in Kiribati who are just as football crazy as men. If encouraged and supported, women’s football in Kiribati can thrive!
We had met some of the girls who play football in Betio the night before, at a cultural evening which included dance performances and Ball-signings at the Tenimaraoi Maneaba community center in Betio. I (Iris), asked when they practice. “Tomorrow at 6.30 am” came the reply. I was thinking “uff, that’s early”, but then again, this would be the best time so as to not suffer too much under the intense heat of the sun.
On the next morning, the sports field, where the Police Day Ceremony had been held, was occupied for an event with the Australian High Commission. Therefore, the training was at the same community center, where the night before the cultural evening was held. The boys started to play under the open roof while the girls started their practise on the sandy parking lot. Pine, the Kiribati National Coach, led a boys training session, and suggested “you’re going to coach the girls, right?”, and I was like “Ehm, okay!”. So I ended up training the girls, some wearing football boots, some wearing flip flops and some playing barefoot. For the last 20 minutes, Pine said “switch!”, and the boys came to train there with me and the girls played under the open roof of the community centre.
After a good session, The Ball had its moment to be headed and signed, not to forget the obligatory photo session. Then it was time to head to our workshop venue for that day.
Workshop:
Our workshop that day involved about 16 participants – girls from the TUC (Tenimaraoi Urban Council) football team, some football coaches and representatives from TUC. With a shy start, we were able to get everyone excited with warm-up games before splitting up into focal groups.
Background on Climate Change: During the group discussions on climate change we learned how everyone on the Kiribati Islands is affected by climate change. Existentially threatening is the sea level rise, which forced many families to move closer to the center of the islands. Highly densely populated areas on North Tarawa are the result. During our entire stay in Kiribati, surges of unseasonal heavy rain led to many football games being canceled or postponed. Moreover, water salinization is a big problem; the few fresh water sources that exist are being contaminated by sea water. Water needs to be imported and is therefore expensive.
Background on Gender Equality: Regarding gender equality, it was said that Kiribati still has a very traditional society, especially in the outer islands. One example that we recognoised is that men are often allowed to eat first, before the women who have also prepared the food and also tidy up after it has been eaten. Also, once married, women are not supposed to continue playing football or any other sports. Additionally, prize money in sports competitions for women is always lower than for men – something that the Kiribati Islands Football Federation is considering changing in the near future.
The highlight of the workshop: The Fairplay Football games, which was enjoyed by all the participants. Different levels of skills were displayed and a great and supportive atmosphere accompanied the matches.
The State of Play – Women and Football in Kiribati:
We experienced the great excitement, skill and passion for the game of football that many girls and women in Kiribati have. We also recognised their shyness – not being used to stepping up and demanding more resources and opportunities to play football. We feel that with more encouragement, support and resources, many women will start and continue to play football in Kiribati. The Kiribati Islands Football Federation is keen on supporting women’s football and the German Special Envoy to the Pacific Islands, who we were to meet a few days later, are ready to support women’s football in Kiribati. We hope that with our and the German Embassy’s help, the KIFF will be able to set up programs that will foster both education and climate action as well as support for gender equality and women’s football.
Mariajosita is the young woman in the blue shirt that you can see in these pictures, who is a football player, a coach at the OFC Just Play Programme and a young mother of two. She was selected to take part in Festival23 (August 6-13, 2023) in Sydney, as young leader from Kiribati. We met her again then since SOF was also part of that festival. Mariajosita is an impressive example of the resilience of (Kiribati) women and their skills n football and leadership. When she signed The Ball, she pledged:
I pledge to empower women to play soccer and to end violence against women.