Support Football & Education for the Ghetto Youth in Zimbabwe (CSPRO Academy)

•My name is Costa Nhamoinesu, a recently retired professional football player, originally from Zimbabwe, but for most of my career I played in Europe (for details see here: www.costanhamoinesu.com). Since 2020, I have been the founder and president of Costa Sports Pro Academy (CSPRO Academy), a football academy which is based in a ghetto (most impoverished district) in Zimbabwe. Our mission is fighting the hardships and obstacles faced by the youths in the ghetto via a combination of football and education. This is in part reflected by our partnership with Seke 1 High School, where our training center is located—so that the youth are trained in an enriching school environment. This mission is inspired by my personal journey: I furthered my education whilst still playing professionally and have seen first-hand the importance of education both during and after my football career. Hence, I also try to instill this dual mindset in the youth of the academy.

•Thus far, 70 youths (U14- U20) have found a home at CSPRO Academy and their membership is free of charge. This is largely because their parents cannot afford to pay membership costs due to the difficult financial situation (low socio-economic status) of people living in the ghetto. Hence, I have been personally funding all the operations of the academy for the past 2 years. For sustainability purposes, at this point I need assistance financially to continue the vision of supporting these youths, educationally, socially and with their sporting talents. For example, I would like to continue paying school fees for the youth who can’t afford it, providing the youth with training equipment, providing their transportation to and from the matches and the general upkeep of the academy. Future long-term goals include: drilling a bore hole for clean water access, and fencing and repairing the school ground the youth train on. It would also be nice to be able to provide the coaches and the rest of the academy staff a financial compensation, because similar to me, their committed investment has been voluntary up until now. The only sponsorship we have thus far, is from my former football club, Sparta Prague, which has provided football kits for the youth.

•Would you like to help us continue and grow our above-described mission for CSPRO Academy?

The academy’s current monthly expenses are USD 1390, which we expect to increase considering our aforementioned vision to expand. Any financial support provided to us will be of paramount importance to continue our vision and mission. More information can be found on the academy’s website www.csproacademy.com, and you can contact me here: +420603558154 or at [email protected].