At first glance, the hills of Uganda and the urban neighbourhoods of Colombia do not appear to have much in common. Nevertheless, over the last three years, the Swiss Academy for Development (SA4D) has implemented projects with similar components in both countries.
Through Moving Youth! in Uganda and Hitting a Home Run for Peace in Colombia, SA4D has combined sport and play with entrepreneurship to create opportunities for learning and development.
Moving Youth!
The Moving Youth! project was implemented in rural Uganda to provide young people and local farming groups with quality technical, agricultural and entrepreneurship training. Over 1,200 people participated in the training courses, 50 percent of whom were women.
The project was developed in partnership with our local partner, Action for Child Social and Economic Transformation (ACSET). The Ugandan organisation contributed its expertise in sustainable agriculture, while SA4D primarily focused on the pedagogical aspects, particularly aiming at integrating the entrepreneurship training into the technical training programme addressed to the young participants – which included training of -trainers and the development of teaching and training manuals.
This collaboration between the two organisations was reinforced by the local community’s strong engagement, especially through the support of older community members. They made their land available, shared their agricultural experience and knowledge, and accompanied the young participants in their activities and training process. This created a genuine intergenerational network that promoted practical experience, mutual support, and shared learning within the training sessions, using sports and play as educational tools.
Hitting a Home Run for Peace
A similar dynamic was observed in Colombian neighbourhoods, despite being marked by violence caused by armed groups and criminal networks’ activities. As part of the Hitting a Home Run for Peace project, sport became a means of symbolically and practically reclaiming public spaces, at the same time, promoting income-generating activities and entrepreneurship.
The local partner, Grupo Internacional de Paz (GIP), used baseball to bring children and parents together and to recreate safe spaces. Here again, the communities’ involvement played a central role: local coaches and leaders were actively engaged throughout the project’s activities.
A more practice-oriented entrepreneurship training programme was developed through which participants were guided in developing their own business plans. These could be submitted for start-up funding which was specifically set up for this purpose.
Adaptation to local contexts
The entrepreneurship training was delivered in various forms, always adapted to the socioeconomic context, and tailored to the needs and interests of the target groups in each country. However, the goal remained the same: to promote economically viable prospects for young people – and for local communities – in contexts where opportunities are limited, either by violence and risks associated with armed groups, or by structural unemployment.
Results and challenges
The sport- and play-based activities promoting social cohesion clearly strengthened participants’ engagement, especially among women. In Colombia, for instance, a group of seven women founded a micro-enterprise selling homemade household cleaning products, which has been growing steadily since its creation. They have hired new employees and their sales increase every month.
In Uganda, young people and farmers were able to strengthen their investment capacity through the established savings and loans groups. These groups allowed them to save collectively, take out small loans, and thus finance their first entrepreneurial initiatives.
The geographical dispersion of participants and the high degree of heterogeneity among the target groups posed a common challenge for both projects. This insight has prompted SA4D to focus on specific regions in the next project phases and rely on enhanced digital and communication measures to overcome the physical distance.
Empowering participants
The success of the projects can also be measured by the development of participants’ self-efficacy and life skills. Participants feel more confident, independent, and capable of taking action, whether it be to start their own business, find a job, or set personal life goals. The final reports show a significant reduction in unemployment among participants. Many gained enough confidence to start or revive their own small businesses, thanks to the knowledge they acquired and the support network they built among themselves. Although the income generated is still relatively modest, participants’ financial situation is improved.
These projects demonstrate that sustainable and relevant impact can only be achieved by empowering local actors, sharing resources, and adapting methods to respective circumstances.
Published 11.03.2026