PepsiCo and the Asian Football Development Project (AFDP) Sign Strategic Partnership Agreement
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- Under the theme of “Kick for Hope”, PepsiCo and AFDP join hands to empower people across Asia through football
- PepsiCo signs a one-year strategic partnership with the Asian Football Development Project (AFDP) to encourage people across Asia particularly women and young people to play a greater role in society through a range of football-focused activities;
- The strategic partnership between PepsiCo and the AFDP to include a new range of football activities in more than 40 Asian countries with a special focus on 11 countries in the Middle East in addition to India under the theme ‘Kick for Hope’;
- The partnership aims at engaging women and youth in particular and helping them build a better future through physical development and social empowerment by using football as a catalyst for social change and development.
Dubai, UAE, April 7, 2013: In a ground-breaking initiative for social development and for the sports community, global food and beverage leader PepsiCo, today announced that it has entered into a one-year strategic partnership with the Asian Football Development Project (AFDP). Under the theme ‘Kick for Hope’, the partnership will cover over 40 countries with a special focus on the Middle East and India.
The signing of the agreement will see both PepsiCo and AFDP join hands in the execution of major social responsibility projects using football as a tool for social development in at least 18 countries throughout Asia in 2013 and touching the lives of thousands of people. The focus will be on the Middle East and India across 11 countries including the UAE, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, Oman, Bahrain, Iraq, Lebanon, and Yemen in addition to, India.
Across all countries, PepsiCo will be joining AFDP in the execution of special grassroots football projects or initiating new ones; in addition to building on the power and popularity of the game to increase participation of women and youth.
Joint awareness raising activities to promote the importance of football for health and well-being and as a driver for social development will also take place throughout the year. Moreover, capacity building and training is planned for coaches and referees.
The partnership was formally announced at a press conference in Dubai attended by His Royal Highness Prince Ali Bin Al Hussein, Chairman of the AFDP and FIFA Vice President representing Asia, and Saad Abdul-Latif, Chief Executive Officer of PepsiCo Asia, Middle East & Africa.
The AFDP is the brainchild of HRH Prince Ali Bin Al Hussein of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan who has dedicated his personal time and effort to roll out the project throughout Asia. Football plays an important role in shaping the culture of many societies and the AFDP aims to encourage social inclusion and participation by all members of society in the game with a particular emphasis on women and youth.
“We are extremely happy to be partnering with PepsiCo – not only are they a world-leading company but one that is totally committed to social development particularly in relation to the education of youth and empowerment of women through sport. This is a perfect fit with AFDP’s mission and values, and we are also striving to implement the same level of best-practice PepsiCo exhibit in their everyday business. With PepsiCo as our partner, we know that we can work closely together to capitalize on the unique power of the world’s favourite game to drive positive social change and promote sustainable development across Asia” said HRH Prince Ali Bin Al Hussein.
“PepsiCo has a long association with football, the world’s most popular sport and we strongly believe that it is a powerful agent for social change and development” said Saad Abdul-Latif, Chief Executive Officer, PepsiCo Asia, Middle East & Africa. “As we enter into this strategic partnership with the AFDP, we trust that through our shared values and the strength of our conviction in the power of the game to drive social development, we will be able to positively impact local communities in Asia and in the Middle East” he added.
Women’s football in the Middle East and India is developing strongly, and, with the projects to be rolled out as part of this partnership and under the theme of ‘Kick for Hope’, it is anticipated to grow even further.
“We at AFDP very much admire PepsiCo’s long-standing commitment to empowering women especially in the Middle East and India where there are many challenges to overcome and stereotypes to break. Together with PepsiCo we hope to further facilitate access to safe environments where women and girls can get together and actively engage in a fun, healthy and safe sport that builds character and teaches social skills which are useful on and off the field, both football and society as a whole in Asia can only benefit from that” said HRH Prince Ali Bin Al Hussein.
“We believe that the strength of the PepsiCo brand is in a community relations context, and the projects planned as part of our partnership are all about empowerment to encourage greater participation in football by women and youth. The core of this partnership is grassroots football, realizing dreams and giving opportunities to those who are less fortunate and PepsiCo is proud to be part of that.”
AFDP and PepsiCo will jointly encourage the creation of women’s football tournaments in the countries covered by the agreement with a focus on the Middle East and India.
“Women’s football is one of, if not the fastest growing sports internationally. There are now over 30 million women and girls playing around the globe, and many of them have dreams to play at elite level, to represent their countries with pride, and some even to become World Champions like our talented Japanese sisters. PepsiCo’s support will enable AFDP to create more new pathways for young women – even those from marginalized areas – to achieve such dreams. That is very important to AFDP. The game at all levels must be accessible to all” said HRH Prince Ali Bin Al Hussein.
“This partnership will also support youth football programmes in the Middle East and India at a grassroots level. The benefits of organised, competitive sports to young people cannot be overstated” said Saad Abdul-Latif. “Football encourages team spirit, fitness and healthy competition which are all valuable life lessons for young people as they build their future,” he added.
The AFDP has supported nationwide grassroots programmes in several Asian countries. For example, in the Philippines, a programme for 6‐12 year old children in schools, regional football associations and clubs across 33 regions is well underway, while in Chinese Taipei, nationwide youth leagues for Under-10 and Under‐12 boys and girls have been introduced.
PepsiCo as well has a long history and close association with football which is well rooted in its Pepsi brand campaigns but more importantly in its signature social responsibility projects focused on building the skills of youth in the field of football.
One of the most notable examples of such projects includes, Pepsi brand Egypt Dawry El Madares (Egypt’s Football Academy) which runs in partnership with the Ministry of Education. The academy introduces football to all primary and secondary public schools in Egypt with the aim of building the skills of youth so they can become professional players in the future. The programme has benefited more than half a million people since its start in 2003 and has gained high popularity among local populations.
The project helped in nurturing football talent in Egypt and today we see names like Hossam Arafat (Zamalek), Ali El Araby (Empi), Hossam Hassan, Mohamed Tawakol and Ahmed El Shinawy (Al Masry) and Hussein Al Sayed Hussein (Al Ahli), most of them play in Egyptian football teams and in national football team under 20.
PepsiCo also has a similar program in Nigeria, the Pepsi Football Academy (PFA) which has been running since 1992, operating 13 training centres across 12 Nigerian cities. Through the PFA PepsiCo has provided the environment for over 3,000 youngsters to train and play and hence aspire to a rewarding football career. PFA has helped to build the skills of some talented and skilful youngsters playing their trade in the Nigerian League and other Leagues in Europe, Africa and Asia John Michael Obi (Chelsea), Osaze Odemwingie, (West Brom) , England, Elderson Echejile, (Braga FC), Portugal to name few.
The AFDP is focused on increasing its impact through request-based project support in various Asian countries. The AFDP aims to implement at least 11 new projects this year in the Middle East and India, such as Mine Awareness projects for refugees in Jordan, and hopes to have as many as 217 teams comprising 2,540 children participating in the Chinese Taipei Youth League.
In one of the AFDP’s established projects, the Faisal Cup for Underprivileged and Refugee Children, organized in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, saw the participation of over 600 children and 1,100 community members. In Cambodia, the AFDP is providing full‐time training, housing and educational opportunities for 30 girls at risk of human trafficking. The grassroots football initiative in Bhutan is benefiting as many as 3,000 students and 200 teachers in 100 schools, and, in India, it is also organising football programmes benefiting 250,000 underprivileged children.
‘Kick for Hope’ – Factsheet
Global food and beverage leader, PepsiCo and the Asian Football Development Programme (AFDP) are entering into a one year strategic partnership under the theme of Kick for Hope.
The ground-breaking initiative will run in more than 40 Asian countries with a special focus on the Middle East and India.
It will encourage women and youth to play a greater role in society through a range of football-focused activities and will bring about grassroots social development throughout Asia using football as a catalyst for change.
The partnership between PespsiCo and ADFP is one of the biggest grassroots football initiatives in the region.
The signing of the agreement will see both PepsiCo and AFDP join hands in the execution of major social responsibility projects using football as a tool for social development in at least 18 countries throughout 2013 and touching the lives of thousands of people.
The agreement will also focus on the Middle East and India across 11 countries including the UAE, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, Oman, Bahrain, Iraq, Lebanon, Yemen in addition to, India.
The AFDP is the brainchild of HRH Prince Ali Bin Al Hussein of Jordan, the FIFA Vice-President for Asia, who is taking a personal responsibility in rolling out the program across the continent.
Initiatives that will be part of ‘Kick for Hope’ include:
1. Project Post-Headscarf: Providing Impetus For The Promotion Of Women‘s Football In West Asia
- 3rd Moving Ahead Round Table hosted in Amman in January 2013
- Focus was on how participation in women’s football can be increased in West Asia
- Participants included football associations in the West Asian region, international experts and external stakeholders
- Run in conjunction with the West Asian Football Federation with key output being an action plan for developing women’s football in the region
2. Project Refugees – Jordan: Resilience Building and Mine Awareness Football Programmes for Refugees in Jordan
- Run in conjunction with Spirit of Soccer, US Aid and the Jordan FA
- Target is refugee children in Jordanian based refugee camps along the border
- Aim is to build resilience in these children by engaging them in enjoyable activities that have an education focus (eg components of landmine awareness will be included)
- This will be a pilot project with the aim to extend learning to Lebanon, Palestine, and Turkey with the support of UEFA, then Indochinese countries
3. Project Jordan: World Refuge Day Event For Refugee Kids
- Grassroots football and educational activities for approximately 500 refugee children from varying backgrounds in Jordan
- In collaboration with Jordan Football Association, Save the Children, UNHCR, Nobel Peace Foundation
4. Project India: The Magic Bus reaching 250,000 underprivileged children in four regions of India
- Provide equipment, coaching and uniforms for the most talented of these children
- Children will be integrated into main stream Indian leagues and talent programmes
5. Project Footballs: Provision of UEFA balls to football organisations in Asia
- 250 balls provided to each of the 12 participating countries at the Women’s Football in West Asia Round Table
- 500 balls provided to the Kyrgyzstan football association
- 500 balls to be provided to PACES Palestine for their grassroots coaching programme
- On‐going application for a maximum of 500 balls open to all football organisations
6. Project Cambodia: The Mighty Girls Select Team For Girls At High Risk For Human Trafficking
- Full‐time training, housing and educational opportunities for 30 Cambodian girls
- Talent development model forming core of Cambodian women’s national team provides female community role models
- Our support provides for an international coach, USA exchange programme, hosting of a regional tournament, and participation in the Vietnamese U‐19 League
- Run in conjunction with SALT Academy
7. Project Bhutan: Introduction Of Play for Life Grassroots Football
- Beneficiaries: 3000 students, 200 teachers, 100 schools and 33 regions
- Introduce GR football in Bhutan with a focus on reaching out to the provinces and providing equal opportunities to the regions
- The implementation will be done with MOE, communities and clubs
- AFDP will provide equipment for 30 of the 100 schools
8. Project Taiwan: National U‐8, U‐10, U‐12 Leagues
- Continuation of nationwide youth leagues for U‐8, U‐10 and U‐12 boys and girls introduced in 2012
- 4‐8 leagues in the 4 regions with 8‐10 teams playing throughout Feb‐Jun
- Regional knockout competition with top 2 teams from each local league in May
- Top 2 teams from regional competition go to 3‐day final to tournament in Taipei.
- National finals spread over 2 weekends in May/Jun
9. Project Tajikistan: Youth Elite Development Programme in Clubs
- Youth development programme focusing on high quality knowledge exchange and structural development in existing clubs through partnership with international expertise provided by RUSH Soccer Club (US)
- Beneficiaries ‐ Year 1: 288 girls and boys aged 10‐18, 6 trainers; Year 2: 480 boys and girls aged 10‐18, 12 trainers
- Run with Tajikistan Football Federation
10. Project Mongolia: Children – Football –Future Grassroots Project
- Run in conjunction with Mongolian Football Federation
- Training of coach educators in 21 provinces cross Mongolia and 9 districts of Ulaanbaatar
- Following FIFA 3 day seminar and one day festival format
- Each festival will involve 200‐ 300 children
- AFDP will support the phase 2 (2013) and phase 3 of the project across 16 provinces in total
11. Project St George‘s Park: Joint Talented Asian Coach Scholarship Programme With The FA
- Talented coaches from the Asian region participate in an A‐ License course run by The FA at St George’s Park ‐ their new high performance facility
- Coaches selected based on their ability to step up in their near future into national service as well as provide support to AFDP Programmes
- First coaches in 2012 (3 men, 1 woman) came from Bhutan, Palestine, Philippines, and Iraq)
- Expansion of programme to 10 coaches this year through partnership with The FA
About PepsiCo
PepsiCo is a global food and beverage leader with net revenues of more than $65 billion and a product portfolio that includes 22 brands that generate more than $1 billion each in annual retail sales. Our main businesses – Quaker, Tropicana, Gatorade, Frito-Lay and Pepsi-Cola – make hundreds of enjoyable foods and beverages that are loved throughout the world. PepsiCo’s people are united by our unique commitment to sustainable growth by investing in a healthier future for people and our planet, which we believe also means a more successful future for PepsiCo. We call this commitment Performance with Purpose: PepsiCo’s promise to provide a wide range of foods and beverages from treats to healthy eats; to find innovative ways to minimize our impact on the environment by conserving energy and water and reducing packaging volume; to provide a great workplace for our associates; and to respect, support and invest in the local communities where we operate. For more information, please visit www.pepsico.com.
About AFDP
The AFDP, launched in Jordan in February 2012, is a non-profit youth commission founded and chaired by Prince Ali Bin Al Hussein (FIFA Vice-President), focuses its needs-based support on promoting social development through football across Asia, with a special emphasis on grassroots and youth development, advancing women’s football and empowering women, as well as protecting and developing the game. For more information, please visit http://www.weareasia.com/en/the-afdp/
