Tech staffing company Tunga organized an inspiration course for Ugandan football coach educators from 13 to 17 December 2023. The course’s primary theme was turning Ugandan youth football players into problem-solvers on and off the pitch. It was a follow-up from last year’s course about positive coaching in October 2022. The course was facilitated by the Federations of Ugandan Football Associations (FUFA) and took place at its Technical Centre in Njeru, Uganda. About 38 coaches from 7 regions participated in the game-changing educators’ training and it was the talk of several media houses in Uganda.
Tunga’s CEO, Ernesto Spruyt, a UEFA-B certified youth football coach, brought a team of experts from the Netherlands to conduct the training course. Among them is Kevin Kanu of Kanu Experience, who is also a youth coach at Sparta Rotterdam. Being raised by African parents in the Netherlands Kevin was the perfect person to navigate any cultural differences in the execution of this course. The curriculum consisted of both theoretical and field training.
According to Ernesto Spruyt, problem-solving skills are important in any profession whether on the pitch or in tech. As it is such a widespread and substantial part of society, football is a great way to cultivate and promote this skill, hence, the goal of training FUFA coaches was to integrate the art of problem-solving into the way they teach football.
“What do you need to learn problem-solving skills?… You need to solve problems! Create a culture where they (youths) are allowed to make mistakes, where they are allowed to take risks. Create an environment where it’s safe to make mistakes…
…risk- and penalty-avoiding behaviour limits learning” Ernesto charged the FUFA coaches during his introduction of the 5-day course
The Uganda Youth Football Association (UYFA) chairman, Robert Kiwanuka expressed his gratitude for this training. Ali Mwebe, the FUFA Technical Director was impressed and was quick to note that most of the FUFA coaches need more resident educators who can provide them with quality training in their regions. According to him, “This course will give them a chance to have their abilities, qualities, and skills identified”.
“We believe this is a wonderful development —working with Uganda Youth Football Associations.” Ali Mwebe concluded.
In an interview with one of the participants, Alex Kahlima, the director of Kickit Soccer Academy in Uganda, he expressed his gratitude and said, “The course has taught us as coaches to be more player-centered rather than being coach-centered because the player solves the problems on the field [in comparison with] always having the coaches conducting everything without the influence or involvement of the players.”
Ernesto Spruyt concluded the course on the following note: “Football is a creative channel to teach young people life skills such as the art of critical thinking and problem solving and the coaches are funnels to spread this knowledge amongst the youths in Uganda. We are positive that the coaches can influence their players by leveraging this knowledge, causing a ripple effect and making not just great football players but also better human beings.”
The training finished with a flourish on the 17th of December with an awarding ceremony where each participant coach received a certificate. Tunga’s goal was to inspire coach educators and youth coaches in Uganda. It wants to keep the momentum going and so, it has plans to do much more.
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Tunga is on a mission to unleash Africa’s tech talent in some of the most unconventional ways. We take a social and talent development approach by looking for ways to provide African talent with international job opportunities and groom the up-and-coming talent for the international market.
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