NBA-AFD Basketball Program reaches over 100,000 children across 128 Kenyan schools

A basketball initiative that began in 48 schools in Nairobi has expanded to 128 schools across four counties, with a disability inclusion component opening up organised sport and life-skills training to more children.

More than 103,000 children across four Kenyan counties have been reached by a basketball-based youth development program that uses sport to teach teamwork, discipline, resilience and leadership, as organisers marked its third Basketball Experience Finals in Nairobi.

The Basketball Experience (BE) Finals 2026, held at the Kenya Academy of Sports court in Kasarani, brought together young players, educators, development partners and community stakeholders to celebrate the program’s reach and its focus on making sporting opportunities accessible to children of different abilities.

Funded by the Agence Française de Développement (AFD) Group, run in collaboration with NBA Africa and implemented by Expertise France through a local partnership with the Kenya Red Cross, the program has reached 103,340 children in 128 schools across Nairobi, Machakos, Kiambu and Kajiado counties.

The milestone reflects an expansion from the initiative’s initial focus on 48 schools in Nairobi to a wider program combining basketball training with life-skills education and disability inclusion.

The Kenyan program officially launched on July 19, 2024, building on a wider AFD and NBA partnership that had supported similar basketball-based development initiatives elsewhere in Africa.

At its launch, the initiative introduced weekly basketball and life-skills sessions, alongside the unveiling of two refurbished outdoor basketball courts at the Kenya Academy of Sports in Kasarani.

The courts were expected to benefit more than 1,000 young people from surrounding communities.

The initial program focused on 48 schools in Nairobi, using basketball as a platform to promote youth development, physical and mental wellbeing, and social inclusion.

By its first anniversary in July 2025, the program had reached more than 50,000 students through school assemblies and basketball clinics.

Its reach subsequently expanded to 128 schools across four counties, according to program information released ahead of the 2026 finals.

The initiative uses the Jr. NBA curriculum to train coaches in basketball techniques for children, alongside locally developed inclusive manuals designed to help participants aged eight to 18 develop skills applicable beyond the court.

These include teamwork, discipline, resilience and leadership, positioning basketball as a means of supporting young people's personal development as well as sporting participation.

A central feature of the program’s expansion has been its disability inclusion component, which brings children with hearing, visual and physical impairments into structured basketball and life-skills activities.

Launched in March 2026 at Isinya School for the Deaf, the component introduced adapted coaching approaches and accessible activities intended to make participation possible for children with different needs.

The expansion includes 32 specialised schools serving children with disabilities, alongside additional schools incorporated into the programme’s mainstream component.

The overall school network grew to 128, spanning Nairobi, Machakos, Kiambu and Kajiado.

By integrating children with disabilities into organised sporting activities, the initiative seeks to create opportunities for them to learn and play alongside their peers while developing confidence and social skills.

The approach also requires coaches and educators to adapt how they deliver activities, rather than treating access to sport as dependent solely on a child’s physical or sensory abilities.

Following a series of mini-tournaments held in July, the 2026 finals brought together participants to showcase their basketball skills and celebrate the program’s wider work in youth development.

The event was attended by French Ambassador to Kenya H.E. Wadid Benaabou, AFD Director for Kenya Anne-Gaël Chapuis, NBA Africa CEO Claire Akamanzi, and Deputy Secretary General Joe Mbalu.

Others included Kenya Deaf Basketball Association President Christine Kirui, Kajiado County Director of Gender and Inclusivity Jane Gichure, and County Director of Education Martin Cheruyiot.

The program’s expansion demonstrates how a school-based sporting initiative can combine coaching with broader educational objectives, particularly when its delivery model is extended to children who face barriers to participating in conventional sporting activities.