Grow the Game Drive: South Sudan

Help us level the playing field.

South Sudan is the youngest nation on the planet, and is widely known for its war-torn past and lack of development.

However, it's also one of the youngest nations in the world, with roughly half of the population being under 18 years old. The nation, its residents, and refugees across the planet are now emerging from dark times into a new, hopeful frontier.

And after the South Sudan National Basketball Team not only showed out in the FIBA World Cup, but qualified for the 2024 Olympics, the nation had something to rally around and proof that basketball can change the landscape of the country and its people.

Due to the war, many South Sudanese families fled the country to places like Australia, America, and Western Europe, where South Sudanese hoopers are beginning to sprout into some of the most promising young athletes on the planet, including a host of NBA and high-level international players.

So, it's easy to see why basketball is rapidly growing in South Sudan, and becoming a much more widely played sport, even with a significant lack of physical and organizational resources.

The next step, even if on a small scale at first, is to help all we can to level the resource playing field. To supplement the work and passion being put forth by our partners on the ground with anything we can. You never know where one pair of shoes, one conversation, or one basketball can take a young athlete.

Africa in general, and beautiful countries like South Sudan, are not only the future of basketball, but of the world, and this is the least we can do.

HOW TO SUPPORT:

Our Goals:

Shoe & Sock Donations

We've set a goal of 100 pairs of hoops shoes (in any condition) to ship over to Juba.
All shoe donations will be complimented with a handwritten note to the athlete, inspiring them and opening lines of communication with our outreach team at AEI!

Basketball Shipments

This is one of the toughest resources to find in less developed countries like South Sudan, and ironically is the only resource necessary to play.
We're looking to fundraise enough to ship 100 basketballs over to our Solid Skills partners.

Gear & Basketball Clothes

This is a bit more of an extra, but it's always good to have new clothes to hoop in!
We're looking for organizations to send merchandise (shirts, socks, shorts, etc.) to help the cause!

How to Contribute:

It's super simple, and we're very flexible! Here are a few of your options:

Ship or drop off shoes:
- Send package to our HQ, DETAIL Miami at: 16410 NW 54th Ave Miami Lakes, FL 33014 NW 54th Ave Miami Lakes, FL 33014.
- Email our project lead Manyiel at [email protected] or any additional info.
- If it's a larger package or you need assistance with shipping prices, shoot an email to [email protected] and we can organize a drop-off location or assistance with the shipping.
Contribute funds: if you have no shoes or materials, or simply would like to help out financially, this helps a ton, too! We'll need funds to cover shipping costs, buy more shoes and basketballs, and more. Check our PayPal fundraiser here to donate!
Contribute basketballs or merchandise: if you're an organization or individual and would like to ship over further resources, shoot an email to [email protected].
Even if you have nothing to contribute, that's OK too! Feel free to spread the word and stay tuned for how it goes.

Our Local Partner: Solid Skills Sports Academy

Solid Skills Sports Academy began as a small Academy in 2017, and has now grown to work with almost 500 athletes all around East Africa. Since starting, they've provided a springboard for hundreds of young athletes to develop and even earn scholarships internationally. As Akec mentions in the video below, it's not just about the on-court skills, but developing robust psychological tools to carry them far past the sport. The staff at Solid Skills will receive and distribute the resources at a camp during holiday time in December! Check out their Instagram here.

Lead Project Manager: Manyiel Wugol

Manyiel is a South Sudanese professional hooper located in Melbourne, Australia. Manny is highly passionate about growing South Sudanese hoops, both in the country itself and in highly-concentrated South Sudanese communities in Australia. He recently began working under the Athlete Empowerment Initiative to plan, organize, and execute on projects aimed at building hoops in all of Africa.