Empower Kibera Youth Through Jump Rope

Carolina for Kibera’s jump rope team, the ‘Paka Skippers’, recently gave a dramatic and eye-catching performance at the famous Carnivore Restaurant in Nairobi, courtesy of Kiwi Shoe Polish and Resolution Health. The little known sport, jump rope, typically evokes laughter from those who are unfamiliar with it, but after the recent performance of the Paka Skippers, there was no laughter to be heard, the crowd just stared in amazement. Through jump rope, the Paka Skippers’ reputation is growing locally and there is growing interest in having the team perform at functions. All of the skippers are from the Kibera slum and through the support of Carolina for Kibera are able to practice their routines and further develop the sport locally.  

Many youth living in pitiable conditions in Kibera slums, and especially girls, never knew they had relegated a talent until they were introduced to Jump Rope. This is a sport many youth cherish in Kibera as it makes them realize the unique talent in them. Through Carolina for Kibera, the jump rope now accommodates both boys and girls, aged 8 to 15 years and through the sport, it has been an open minder of these youth. They now can utilize the opportunity and transform the society they stay in. Christine Ondiek, a 14 year old living in abject poverty notes, “I never knew I was blessed with an awesome talent of skipping this simple string. Whenever I perform publicly, the crowd remains dumbfounded and this makes me feel like a champion. I plan to break the world record in due time”, with a gleam in her eyes, after their usual weekend trainings. The Jump Rope team has managed to win several medals after a competition in the neighboring country, Tanzania and in the coastal province of Kenya. Christine states that jumprope has exposed her and she has learnt new skills that she would love sharing with her equals in the community.

Their three voluntary coaches Amon, Davy and Innocent of the CFK sports program, have helped these youth develop their talents. They realized that most of teens do not know how to tap their talents and now they are out to help them appreciate what they own. The paka skippers now use jump rope to not only develop their talents, but it has deterred them from negative peer pressure, boost their self-esteem, physical fitness and confidence as they interact with many people and this make them have a focused life.