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The Bangkok-based Asia regional international NGO, Right To Play (RTP), Director Michel Bedford will arrive in Pakistan in January to oversee activities of the Pakistan chapter of this newest of new NGO at Islamabad six months back.
Four-time gold medalist Norwegian athlete Johan O. Koss heads this international NGO. With an attractive slogan 'the world wins when children play' the Pakistan chapter, working at three locations - Mansehra, Peshawar, and Quetta - and trying to better the lives of children 'in the most disadvantageous areas by using the power of sports and play' to provide fillip to education, health, life, social skills as well as foster peace among childrenand youth.
In Quetta and Peshawar, the project is focusing primarily on Afghan refugee children who have been one of the worst sufferers of tribal conflicts, war and migration. At Mansehra, RTP is funding supports 30 schools to play games and sports.
With a mission like that the NGO's preference is to help children play football, the world's most favourite sport. The RTP in Pakistan also encourages golf and cricket. However, not many schools in Pakistan could afford buying cricket gears -bat, ball and pair of wickets and a good cricket ground.
Besides, schools in this country cannot possibly afford acres and acres needed for a golf course. But, over all, RTP desires sport to achieve a prominent part of school curriculum and learning process.
For this children are given many coloured balls to play with. Soon after establishing an office, Pakistan RTP received a donation of 3,500 red balls from its Toronto headquarter with the aim that children should "take care of themselves as well as one another", as well as understand that they bond with one another as well as the same community.
In addition to the red colour ball, the organisation also uses balls of four different colours: black, yellow, blue and green. Specific character development is associated with each colour.
For example, red ball denotes development, while the black ball stands for physical development, the yellow for emotional harmony; the blue for social development, with the most comprehensive achievement of 'state of well being' is associated with green ball, of the colour of the Pakistan flag. The last mentioned green ball seeks to achieve all five emotional, mental, physical and social developments.
The children of different ages are given varying sets of games to play with, but some times children of ages two and three are encouraged to play with children between the ages of three and five to highlight variation in play as well as to demonstrate that the same game could be played in many different ways.
An important instruction given during the play is that children bodies need water, therefore, they have to consume a lot of water to keep healthy.
Small girls between three and six years are also encouraged to play with boys to overcome timidity and develop self-esteem and build leadership skills both among boys and girls.
About this inter-mix of children of varying ages and sexes playing against each other, former coach Farah Malik commented 'Girls became strong and confident while playing with boys, and this uplifted mental attitude translates in other activities of life.'
She observed that boys could see girls transform into strong and confident persons after playing games. Each game has a new format, but overall children learn to play as a team. Before the start of each game, children are asked questions to confirm if they have understood the rules of the game and end conflicts between each other as well as improve education and have more fun at school.
RTP Pakistan representative Iqbal Jatoi, who spoke to Business Recorder observed it had been proved that enrolment increased in schools where children had opportunity to play games.
He was rather sorry that the fun out of learning had gone out from schools. 'There were fewer play grounds in schools now, and they encourage only rote learning, as differentiated with real education to meet societal needs. Once upon a time schools used to produce brilliant school products and men of vision who contributed to development of the society.
However, the concept of school education is changing and now many schools as well as the government appreciate the value of physical education and the power of sports. This concept has been adopted in the education policy of the country, and organisations such as the RTP had a role in contributing to the new concept.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2007

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