MANAGUA (Nicaragua) - FENIBAL (Nicaragua Basketball Federation) held their first Mini Basketball Festival called “LET'S GROW MINIBASKETBALL, ONE BALL PER CHILD” over the weekend. There are six planned Festivals in 2021, each limited to 60 children per camp to respect the National COVID – 19 rules.

Mini Basketball promotes stimulating and playful grassroots basketball for 5 – 12-year-olds of both genders. This movement finds its place within the Basketball for Good strategy of the FIBA Foundation, and aims to educate children on the importance of good health and well-being (Sustainable Development Goal 3).

This Mini Basketball movement in Nicaragua is being spearheaded by Hector Jose Meza and Graciela Silva who, in parallel to these events, are going through the FIBA Foundation’s Virtual Mini Basketball Seminar. The objective of the seminar is to guide and support each participating Federation in growing or implementing  their Mini Basketball strategy and ultimately, for them to launch a similar Mini Basketball movement in their country.

The Festival was held to encourage the development of Mini Basketball for Nicaraguan children. As well as to use sport as a tool to transmit values ​​to children.

Children from different schools and academies were invited to the camp and 30% of the 60 children were girls, a promising first step in the goal of having a 50/50 split in future Festivals.

Local Mini Basketball instructors led the event, organizing fun, game-based learning for the children.

The camp included a talk about values that can be taught through basketball, emphasizing topics such as teamwork, trust, solidarity, and organization using clips from the movie Ratatouille and demonstrated in fun on-court exercises.

Children left happy and parents were motivated to support their children in the practice of basketball and become better citizens through sport.

At the end of the camp, each child received a t-shirt and a basketball to motivate them to keep on playing.

FENIBAL has decided to put an emphasis on Mini Basketball throughout the country and is unifying all stakeholders. With a lot of positive feedback and praise, companies have already confirmed their support for the upcoming events.

Next Festivals will be held in the months of May, June, August, September, and November 2021.

By 2022, the goal is to hold one festival per month while gifting a basketball to each participant throughout the process.