Interview with Francois Sagna founder of ASPIR
by Lily Anjabebu Asrat (June 20, 2000)

ASPIR, which stands for the Association of Sports to Improve Refugees, was founded in 1998 by Francois Sagna whose love of youth and sports inspired him to help establish the NGO. The purpose of ASPIR is to assist the development of organized sports and cultural events for refugees and Guineans in order to promote community development. Its activities take place on the border regions of Guinea, close to the intersection where Guinea, Sierra Leone, and Liberia meet. ASPIR hopes  to channel the energies of both refugee and Guinean youth into sports and other cultural activities to promote unity and peace. While engaged in volleyball, basketball, and other such activities, the youth establish friendships, positive relationships, and can enjoy themselves while at the same time healing from the trauma of war and displacement that brought them to Guinea in the fist place. While the World Food Program brings food to the refugees, and Medicines Sans Frontiers provides essential medical care, perhaps it is the activities of ASPIR that are most popular among the youth in this troubled region because it allows them to forget for just a short while the harshness of their reality and to enjoy themselves through sports and culture.

What is the name of your organization and what does it stand for?

The name is ASPIR and it stands for Association of Sports to Improve Refugees. It can also have a double meaning, such as the youth aspiring to improve themselves and to improve their own lives.

What is the purpose of the NGO and what are the main objectives?

The purpose of ASPIR is to promote and assist the development of organized sport and cultural events for refugees and Guineans of all ages and to promote community development. We were established mainly for refugees but we also include and invite the local community to participate in all of our activities. Our project objectives are to work with the  communities of 16 refugee camps to establish centers that will support cultural and sports activities. We also wish to
promote community development by maintaining sporting equipment and cultural materials provided for the purpose of recreation and positive interaction. Finally, we hope to engage men and women in activities that promote unity, peace,
gender awareness, confidence and reconciliation.

How many youth do you estimate participate in or are benefiting from the activities of your organization and where are they?

Well, it's hard to say, but I think that there are 150,000 plus refugees and Guinean youth that are benefiting from our activities. We are working mainly in the Gueckedou and Kissidougou prefectures.

How long has your organization been in existence and how long have you been holding activities?

Well, the organization has been around for about two years, but we just set up our office and started holding events and activities about 12 months ago, starting from January 2000. It is really a unique NGO because it was founded by refugees and Guinean nationals who had a vision of assisting traumatized youth. This was a result of a realization of the lack of community unity within the camps as well as an increase in gender violence, human rights abuses, and delinquent activities. So people got together and proposed to set up playgrounds, to organize sports events, and to create cultural, drama, and music groups. In all of our activities, we try to work with communities to foster community development based on unity, peace and reconciliation through constructive activities. The aim is to de traumatize youth through activities by emphasizing unity, peace and love. These efforts, we hope, have a positive impact on the lives of refugees as well as helping them to become leaders in the rebuilding process in their respective countries.

Can you give me an idea of how sports and cultural activities can help to detraumatize these young refugees who have experienced so much in their short lives?

Recreational activities offer the youth a chance to learn about cooperation and team spirit, as well as providing a release from the daily stresses of life as a young refugee in a foreign country. Part of the mandate of refugee relief work
is to offer a sense of nomalcy to refugee communities. That includes ftm, athletic, and entertaining activities for the youth. We at ASPPIR are trying to provide them with that. We give them a chance to play and to compete and to
forget the difficult situations that they have been thrust into. Refugee youth are particularly vulnerable. So many of them have witnessed their parents, friends, and relatives violently murdered. Some have been victimized and abused by rebels. We want to restore their self esteem and respect by creating a forum of commonality with the youth of Guinea.

In what ways have these activities channeled the energy of the refugee youth to positive and productive pursuits?

The youth have a lot of idle time. After school, they have no organized activities with which to keep themselves busy, so many of them participate in mischievous or |nonproductive activities. Then, the police label them as criminals or a bad
element. Recreation in the form of organized activities like athletics, games, and so on develop the mind, the body, and even the spirit. In addition, many games involve teams, and this can help to reinforce the value of unity and cooperation
in a world in which they have seen much division and disunity. The recreational activities that ASPIR offers will go far in promoting and complementing the organized structures like schools.

How effective are cultural and athletic activities in dealing with the psychological trauma of refugee youth as compared to psychological counseling?

I think that you need a combination of both. I know that many of the traumas suffered by these youth need a clinical expert who is trained in psychiatry and counseling. I also think that people need to participate in some active games and
so on to clear their minds of what they have suffered and to fill their spirits with new and more memorable and happy experiences.

Why did you decide to include Guineans in your activities, considering the focal point of your work is geared towards refugee youth?

Well, I believe that organized recreation offers a forum to bridge the cultural and linguistic differences between Guineans and refugees (Sierra Leonean and Liberian). These youth are often living with, going to school with, going to church with, and otherwise living with Guineans. Participating in organized fun, working towards a common goal, and sharing allows them to make friends in a non threatening and friendly environment. It also helps to create harmony between the refugee community and Guinean citizens.

Do you feel that the activities that you organize are helping to improve the lives of refugee youth, as the name of ASPIR implies and how do you know that you are making a difference?

What I have noticed is that the activities of ASPER have spread fast, letting us know that there really was a need for what we are doing. People are always asking about the activities of our organization, when the next basketball tournament will be, when the next volleyball match will be and so on. We are trying to bring more activities to cater to the needs as we see fit. We need to establish martial arts and we want to have a gyrn. There is a lot to do but there are many restrictions.

What are some of the restrictions and challenges that you have faced in starting and in carrying out the many activities?

I would say that the biggest challenge is related to funding. We need so many things. There is a shortage of equipment at the refugee schools. They need basketballs, volleyballs, footballs, and kickballs. They also need whistles, stopwatches, and megaphones for the supervision of games. Other items for athletic activities such as high jump , bars, pole vaults, hurdles, javelins, discuses, batons, and shot puts will enable us to have tack and field days. Furthermore, jerseys, shoes, shorts and other such items are also sorely needed. Often, the camps as well as urban settings like Gueckedou and
Kissidougou lack spaces for sporting activities. Sometimes, UNHCR or some of the NGOs like IRC or ARC provide some assistance, but sometimes they do not. I have spent a lot of my own savings to carry out a lot of the activities. I will soon be going to Conakry to talk with UNICEF and ECHO about getting funding which they have been promising from the beginning of this year, but which has yet to materialize.

Do you think that some of that may come from the fact that UNHCR prioritizes the help that they must provide putting food, shelter, and health above recreational and athletic activities?

Yes. I definitely agree. They do tend to prioritize and sports and cultural activities are not at the top of the list. But all of it is related. They don't understand that. When they talk about food, shelter, and health, you must also talk about the mental and spiritual health and well being of these youth. You can't talk about health without taking into account the psychological well being of refugee children. Part of the mandate for UNHCR has to do with meeting children's psychological needs. That is what we are doing, trying to meet their psychological needs! We hope to have better  ooperation and participation from UNHCR and other international bodies in the future.

What exactly do you mean when you say cultural activities?

I have noticed that many of these youth are clinging to Western values and cultures while at the same time forgetting their own. I don't want to see the traditional cultures of Africa disappearing and to combat that, I want to promote
indigenous cultures through cultural expressions of dance, music, drama, and soon. Primarily, we have achieved this through African dance.

What does the future hold for ASPIR?

Well, the goal for the future is to transplant the organization to Sierra Leone. We hope that the refugees will be able to return back to their respective countries. I went to Sierra Leonean Leone in January to assess the possibility and to meet with various members of government. They are happy for me to come there and set up what we have set up here. My vision is to build a center, which will include a basketball court, a volleyball court, a theatre/stage, and so on. I want the youth there to come to the center to play basketball, volleyball, participate in dramas, cultural activities, songs and so
on. When you are traumatized, allowing someone to express themselves can allow them to release what they have suffered. But now, the feasibility of that is up in the air. Since the recent fighting and the cessation of the peace that
had been set up, you just don't know of what the security situation is or will be at any given time. Of all of the NGOs that exist in Gueckedou, dealing with the multiple issues concerning refugees, the activities of ASPIR are probably the most popular amongst the youth. It is also the most visible because there are frequent tournaments, games, activities, and events. This is where you see refugee children and youth singing, laughing, playing, and enjoying themselves in a way that is absent in most other activities of NGOs.

Furthermore, it is through the activities of ASPIR that the interaction of Guineans with refugees, as well as the interaction of Sierra Leoneans with Liberias can be seen, and the value of that both for now as well as for the future is invaluable. I sincerely hope that the efforts of local NGOs such as ASPIR, that may not have resources or international connections of the other NGOs, will be recognized and supported for the valuable work that they do.

Lily Anjabebu Asrat