PLPROTECT. EDUCATE. AY EMPOWER. 2017 ANNUAL REPORT 3 A NOTE TO READERS A LETTER 3 A LETTER FROM OUR CHAIR FROM OUR CHAIR 6 MESSAGES FROM OUR CEO AND FOUNDER Over the past six years, I’ve had the privilege to witness Johann and Kevin’s shared vision, to protect, educate and empower the now 1.9 million children participating in Right To Play programs around the globe and the impact it’s having on their lives. 8 WHY WE PLAY 10 WHAT WE DO These girls and boys live in some of the most disadvantaged 12 WHY PLAY WORKS BY communities in the world, from the refugee camps in Jordan PROFESSOR RACHEL JEWKES and Thailand to the streets in Burundi and the slums of Pakistan. 14 WHERE WE WORK Yet through play, they are seeing a bright future for themselves. Play is fuelling these children with opportunity and possibility. It keeps them in school, protects them from dangers like child 16 OUR FOCUS labor and early marriage, informs them on the facts about 18 OUR PRIORITY AREAS malaria, HIV and AIDS and encourages them to rise above the effects of war and conflict. Play is transformational. Beginning 20 JULIENNE, CHILD LEADER with the teachers and coaches diligently using our child-ori- ented curriculums, both inside and outside their classrooms, to the children, their parents and communities. 22 OUR TEAM Play is inspiring a new generation of children to believe in 24 REGIONAL AND NATIONAL OFFICES themselves, tap into their intrinsic power and find a way back to hope. Of course none of this would be possible without the gener- 26 OUR SUPPORTERS osity of our donors and the dedicated team at Right To Play. 28 OUR ATHLETE AMBASSADORS To the former, please know we could not do this without you 30 OUR GLOBAL LEADERSHIP and you have our unending gratitude. To the latter, congrat- COUNCIL & SUPPORTERS ulations on another outstanding year. Working with such a 32 OUR BOARDS talented group of people makes my role with the board of directors tremendously rewarding. Sincerely, 34 OUR FINANCIALS Rob MacLellan 36 SELECT 2017 PARTNERS Chair, International Board of Directors CONTENTS TABLE OF TABLE 2 2017 ANNUAL REPORT IN TANZANIA, at the Boma Primary School in Dar Es Salaam, 12-year-old Amy and 10-year-old Margaret play a popular clapping game that enhances focus and memory, as well as mathematics skills. RIGHT TO PLAY REACHES 1.9 MILLION CHILDREN EACH WEEK IN 15 COUNTRIES AROUND THE WORLD. WE USE PLAY TO UNLOCK THE POTENTIAL IN GIRLS AND BOYS TO INFUSE THEM WITH THE EDUCATION AND LIFE SKILLS THEY NEED TO SUCCEED IN LEARNING AND IN LIFE. Photo by Terence Babb 4 2017 ANNUAL REPORT Photo courtesy of Right To Play OUR Right To Play’s beginnings in an Eritrean refugee camp in 2000. Below, Johann visits with a group of Right To Play junior leaders in Pakistan. When I started Right To Play in 2000, we In 2012, we introduced child protection and of our teachers ensure that girls participate in had 37,000 children participating in our pro- gender equality resources into the organiza- the classroom versus 70 per cent of non-Right grams and a goal to double that number in tion. At the time, 490,000 of the children in To Play teachers. In our leadership programs in a decade. We exceeded it, reaching one mil- our programs were girls and all of them were Jordan’s Al Baqa’a refugee camp, girls and boys lion children in 2012. Five years later, we’re beginning to learn their right to a fair future, are playing together for the first time, while in FROM on our way to surpassing the two million quality education and to say no to unwanted Tanzania, 95 per cent of our teachers versus 21 children milestone. sexual advances. Today, 67 per cent of the per cent of non-Right To Play teachers create a teachers and coaches modeling this critical supportive environment for their students. This There’s an adage that says: it takes a village information to and supporting the girls and is the sustainable benefit of play. to raise a child. I believe our international boys in our programs are female. team of staff, teachers, coaches, partners, Thank you for being a part of our global village. supporters and donors is a global village. By educating teachers, children, their parents Sincerely, By coming together, we continue to im- and communities on child protection and gen- pact the lives of the 1.9 million children in der equality we’re able to reduce gender-based our programs and the tangible results we’re violence and discrimination in classrooms, in seeing is inspiring. communities and at home. In Mali, 96 per cent Johann Olav Koss, Founder FOUNDER AND CEO FOUNDER In 2017, I had the privilege to travel the globe and experience the power of our grams and Right To Play is committed to rigor- mary teachers, ensuring that the 800,000 programs in the lives of some of the world’s most vulnerable children. From our ous measurement and evaluation. One exciting pre-primary students in Tanzania began their gender equality work in Ghana’s northern villages and our national-scale educa- result is in Rwanda where our programs are school year with a Right To Play-trained teacher. tion project in Tanzania to our psychosocial integrated into the school support programs for refugees in the Middle curriculum and the teach- With the support of our generous donors East, Africa and Asia, I have witnessed the ers are trained in our play- we will continue to reach these children and MESSAGES transformative power of play in children’s lives. based approach. In these youth, delivering cost-effective and sustain- schools, the student drop- able impact at scale. At Right To Play, we address some of the most out rate was reduced by critical issues facing children. We empower girls 50 per cent in 2017. Thank you for your ongoing contributions to resist early marriage and to continue their and commitment to our work. education. We teach children how to protect Finally, in line with our themselves from diseases like HIV and malar- strategic plan’s focus on Sincerely, ia. We help child laborers return to school and achieving scale, 2017 was we inspire refugee youth living in dire camp an important year. In part- conditions to find their way back to hope. nership with the Tanzanian Ministry of Education, we I am confident about the impact of our pro- reached 16,000 pre-pri- Kevin Frey, CEO 6 2017 ANNUAL REPORT Photo courtesy of Right To Play (China) IN CHINA, at a primary school in Kawegebo, girls and boys show off the colourful pictures they made during arts and crafts. Their teachers use painting and drawing to teach the children about gender equality. OUR DIFFERENCE PLAY IS AT THE HEART OF EVERYTHING WE DO. OUR WORK FOCUSES ON GAMES, SPORT, CREATIVE AND FREE PLAY TO DRIVE CHANGE IN OF OUR TEACHERS CHILDREN’S LIVES, BOTH INSIDE AND OUTSIDE THE CLASSROOM. ENSURE GIRLS PARTICIPATE VS 70% OF IN MALI 96% NON-RIGHT TO PLAY TEACHERS 8 2017 ANNUAL REPORT WHAT WE DO WHAT S THE POW IN CANADA, children and youth in our ES E Promoting Life Skills for Aboriginal Youth N R R O (PLAY) program (100 per cent funded by A H F Canadian donors), build their leadership skills through creative play. PLAY-BASED LEARNING METHODOLOGY LIF LOP E SK E IL EV L D S social SKILLS cognitive emotional FOUNDATIONAL physical IMPACT AREAS QUALITY CHILD PEACEFUL GENDER HEALTH & EDUCATION PROTECTION COMMUNITIES EQUALITY WELL-BEING Transform Prevent and Support Promote girls’ Provide teaching respond to children access and psychosocial practices, violence and and youth participation, support, effect improve abuse against to develop prevent behavior learning and children so conflict gender-based change to inspire girls that they resolution violence and prevent and boys to are safe and skills, embrace educate and disease and become active thriving. differences empower girls encourage and engaged and promote to advocate positive students. cohesion for their own sexual and in their rights. reproductive communities. health. Photo by James MacDonald 10 2017 ANNUAL REPORT ` WHY PLAY WORKS WHY PLAY THE POWER OF PLAY By Professor Rachel Jewkes, the Executive Scientist for Research Strategy in the Office of the President of the South African Medical Research Council, Secretary of the Sexual Violence Research Initiative and the Director of the ‘What works to prevent violence?’ global program. Working with Right To Play in Pa- schools with Right To Play pro- kistan, I have witnessed the trans- gramming, while mental health formative power of play. Here, studies showed less incidents children face difficulties stemming of reported depression. We also from deep poverty and widespread found a decrease in the use of cor- child labor. Many children, espe- poral punishment. This is critically cially girls, don’t attend school or important in a country which has they drop out before they reach been wracked by violence for de- high school. The quality of educa- cades, as it shows Right To Play’s tion is poor and the schools lack peace-building potential. toilets and drinking water, com- promising the children’s develop- At a Right To Play convention, ment, privacy and health. Right To several youth stepped forward, Play’s play-based programing is thanking the organization for mak- making school a safe space to ing a difference in their lives—one, learn in and bring joy a non-gender con- to their lives.