The Kenyan coastal counties of Kilifi and Kwale look idyllic in travel guides but, behind the idyllic palm-fringed beaches, life is tough for local people and even more so for young women. There are high rates of teenage pregnancy, many are forced to drop out of secondary school and, culturally, there is still a widespread belief that their place is "in the kitchen."

However, football is helping to change that. Under the motto "Tunaweza", which is Swahili for “we can”, and with funding from the FIFA Foundation’s Community Programme, Moving The Goalposts (MTG) is been helping women from the region find a voice, fight for their rights and complete their education. Some have gone on to careers as teachers, musicians, procurement officers and journalists.

One girl, who joined MTG after dropping out of school and returned to complete her education on their insistence, is now a radio presenter. One or two have even managed a career in football, such as Essa Kida who plays in the Turkish First Football League, although that is seen as a welcome bonus. "It is not an end in itself," said MTG's executive director Dorcas Amakobe.

The idea behind MTG is simple. By organising football, it provides girls and young women with a safe space where it can also educate and support them. “We use football to pass our message and our information around reproductive health and women’s rights," said Mrs Amakobe.

The FIFA Foundation, which provides support by training coaches and referees, organising football camps and helping to pay staff, was founded in March 2018 as an independent entity with the objective of helping promote positive social change around the world. Its goals are overseen by the FIFA Foundation Board, led by FIFA President Gianni Infantino. The FIFA Foundation CEO is Youri Djorkaeff, and its work is also regularly supported by FIFA Legends. Each year the foundation invites well-established non-profit entities who are addressing a myriad of social issues through football, to apply for funding.

Before MTG was founded nearly 20 years ago, women’s football was unheard of in the region – which made it the ideal vehicle for encouraging change. "We needed to do something that was not considered to be traditional for women, something that would challenge the perception of communities," she said. "Football was not considered a woman's sport -- it was the best-known sport and, yet, it was a no-go zone for women -- so we thought it would be a good way to show that women can do anything that a man can do."

It also provided an opportunity for women and girls to be in a public, open space and helped them develop life skills, such as fair play and acceptance of defeats and success. "It teaches them how to be a leader and at the centre of the community. On the pitch, you need to communicate, you need to pass the ball and get your team mates involved and all of those things are important in life as well," said Mrs Amakobe.

MTG currently has around 9,000 members and, until the COVID-19 pandemic, it was organising three leagues for different age groups. It has helped 30 schools introduce women’s football and has a team in the Kenyan women's league.

One of the biggest concerns in the region is the number of girls who drop out of school and MTG offers scholarships to support vulnerable girls and young women so they can afford to pay for their education. Some of the young people who have been helped return to MTG as coaches.

There has been some resistance, often from the families themselves. "There was an idea that football would make you become too masculine. The families expect that a girl is supposed to help around the house, get a husband, get married and have children, those are very clear standards that the community has set for women,” said Mrs Amakobe.

”Part of the challenge was to overcome the misconceptions, such as the idea that football would make women too muscular and that their breasts would not be as round as they should be."

But she says that, slowly, the situation is improving. “We have managed to change the perceptions of the community – some girls are even refereeing boys’ matches.”

Like football around the world, MTG has also been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Grassroots football has been brought to a standstill in Kenya although once again the MTG has stepped into the void by continuing to offer fitness sessions and ensure its members are well-informed.

"We have provided children with face masks and introduced a COVID session into our health curriculum,” said Amakobe. “There was a lot of misinformation circulating."

This article is part of our series focused on women’s football, and women in football, to celebrate International Women’s Day 2021. To find out more about FIFA’s Women’s Football Strategy and Development Programmes, and to read more articles like this, click here.