10 April 2020
The story about a girl Tokzhan, who has been engaged in football at the professional level for 15 years. Despite of all her efforts to succeed in her football career, she continues to face stereotypes, sexism, and condemnation from a society because of her professional choice.
Many people are telling her that football is not a women's sport and that it would be better if she did a household work than spent all her time on the field with the ball. But Togzhan is used to condemnations and does not pay any attention to what people tell her. She took responsibility for her choice and plays football for all the women and girls of the country. Tokzhan encourages all girls to engage in the sport they want and to become whatever they want to be, and challenged them not to be limited by gender stereotypes. UNESCO encourages women to participate in footbal and the so-called “male” sports, thereby emphasizing the importance of sports in eliminating gender inequalities and empowering girls and women around the world in the framework of the Kazan Action Plan.
Women's football has recently gained greater recognition, as evidenced by the enthusiasm surrounding the Women's World Cup 2019. As the United Nations’ agency in charge of physical education and sport, UNESCO, promotes the values of sport and its role in forging more inclusive societies.
Supporting women's football can thus serve as a powerful lever for the empowerment of women and girls, making our societies more inclusive. It is within this framework that UNESCO and FIFA signed the Football for Schools partnership in Davos last year.
UNESCO's #ChangeTheGame campaign is a fine opportunity to mobilize together with women footballers, be they amateurs or professionals, against discrimination, sexism, harassment, the glass ceiling, and other obstacles women face. It will also help launch a reflection on the values of solidarity and respect in sport, and on actions to be taken for gender equality in the world of sport.
The video was produced in the framework of UNESCO's Almaty campaign on promotion of sports for development and peace #IDSDP2020
Permanent link: http://en.unesco.kz/changethegame-or-about-the-role-of-women-s-football-in-achieving-of-gender-equality