Kampala
Spirit
In the heart of Kampala, Uganda, a new KLABU clubhouse is taking shape. It's a safe space where refugee and Ugandan children can come together to play and learn, no matter their circumstances.
Everywhere you look in Kampala, there's a game being played, even when a huge downpour is about to come
Uganda is home to nearly 2 million refugees, mainly from South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo, as well as from more than seven other African countries. Around 80% are women and children, who bring with them talent and potential.
Many have made their way to the capital, Kampala, where they live side by side with Ugandan communities but often face challenges of daily life and integration. In the city, we explored how a KLABU clubhouse can best support both refugees and local communities. We teamed up with the UN Refugee Agency UNHCR and Youth Sport Uganda to map the city’s challenges and hopes. With more than 200,000 refugees living alongside Ugandan neighbours in Kampala, barriers remain around integration, recreation and belonging.
We also met with local organisations in the the Nakivale Refugee Settlement, home to over 250,000 refugees, mainly from the DRC. We were impressed by their energy and initiative. Refugee-led organisations such as Julien Mayele’s Raise Chess Academy and Hubert Mweze’s Mugenyi Refugees Youth Center are proof of the creativity and drive that make sport and play central to community life. We hope that in the future, we will also be able to initiate a clubhouse in Nakivale!
Positivity and great energy at the Raise Chess Academy
Julien Mayele makes sure everyone is welcome at his academy
The children of the Raise Chess Academy are football-crazy
Confidence on and off the pitch
Kampala offers the greatest opportunity for KLABU’s impact. In recent years, thousands of refugees have moved to the city every year to rebuild their lives, often settling in neighbourhoods with few spaces to connect with local Ugandans.
Once in Kampala, refugees look for better professional opportunities but also receive little of the support available in the settlements like Nakivale. In the neighbourhood of Nsambya, more than 7,500 refugees live in difficult conditions. Just meters away stands the Police Children School, where over a third of the 1,700 pupils are refugees. This is where KLABU, together with the school and the local community, is creating a unique city clubhouse: a safe space to play, learn and connect.
Run by a team of refugees and locals and supported by our local partner Youth Sport Uganda, the clubhouse will give access to sports and play to more than 10,000 children and others. In addition to sports, it will serve as a safe and welcoming hub with solar power, music, Wi-Fi and space to learn. Over time, it will grow into a place where partners can add arts, music and education, building bridges between newcomers and locals through the joy of sport.
And while we focus on much-needed support for refugees in Kampala, we will also stand with those in the settlements – backing the Raise Chess Academy in Nakivale with equipment and introducing our innovative Sports Library system together with Julien and his team.
The sports pitch of the school where the Clubhouse will be located
From red earth to boundless energy: play finds a way in Kampala
You can support us to make the Kampala Spirit clubhouse possible by joining the fundraiser we have launched with Golazo for the NN Marathon Rotterdam 2026!
Designed by the renowned architecture firm MVRDV and built in Rotterdam by our partner Tchai International, the clubhouse is ready to for Kampala.
You can be part of this, by running in the NN Marathon Rotterdam 2026 and taking part in our fundraiser, supported by our partner Golazo. With all of you running together for KLABU, we can ensure that the Kampala Spirit shines bright in the years to come. Find out more here.
