SPORTS & NUTRITION

MAPLE engages and empowers young women and men through running softball, baseball, and tennis programs. These programs support youth health, community engagement, and school attendance. A large number of youth have been able to receive scholarship opportunities to continue with education as a result of their talents in sports.

MAPLE Uganda’s Lira Program has been empowering youth through baseball and softball since 2017. By working closely with savings groups and community members, MAPLE learned the importance of developing programs for youth to break the cycle of poverty, as an astonishing 50% of the 36 million people who live in Uganda are 15 years of age or younger. Our baseball and softball programs are built with intentions to support cross-generational activities that will keep youth actively engaged in healthy team activities and school. The program helps build up talent and lobbies support for the students with the most potential, helping them to get recruited. 

The benefits of these teams are expressed by youth players, Linda Adongo and Akite Petra, who have received full-ride scholarships to attend a prestigious secondary school near Kampala because of the success in the classroom and on the field:

“We had never heard about this sport until it was introduced at our school and we are very proud of this sport because it has helped us in various aspects [of life]. The game of softball has changed my mindset both in class and on the pitch; through softball we now understand what team spirit means in whatever we do. A lot has happened in our lives, and the game has kept us in school for all these years. Since we started this, we have gotten a lot of experience, made lots of friends by involving ourselves in this sport, and we want to continue with this game up to the national level.”