“Hoops for Health is a vehicle for change in Papua New Guinea”: FIBA Foundation Youth Leader Jordan Sere

PORT MORESBY (Papua New Guinea) – From fighting the scourge of tuberculosis to combating climate change through Basketball For Good actions, Papua New Guinea’s Jordan Sere is a shining example of a proactive FIBA Foundation Youth Leader.

What’s the FIBA Foundation Youth Leadership Program?

The FIBA Foundation Youth Leadership program is on a mission to educate and inspire Basketball For Good actions globally. Through innovative online training workshops, Youth Leaders are encouraged to advance their preferred United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) within their local communities. Spanning five continents, youth leaders are already championing positive initiatives across health, gender equality, climate change and more, using basketball as a vehicle.

Who is Jordan Sere?

Papua New Guinea (PNG) Youth Leader Jordan Sere is conscious of the peculiar geography of his country. An island in the Pacific, PNG is faced with the dual challenges of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) as well as rising sea levels due to climate change.

The 29-year-old is currently working as a Hoops For Health coordinator for PNG’s National Basketball Federation. Specifically designed for Pacific Island Nations by FIBA Oceania, Hoops For Health seeks to raise awareness on NCDs among children through innovative basketball drills.

Sere is also an international 3x3 player, having represented PNG at the Pacific Games in Samoa in 2019. In 2021, his team placed first in PNG’s National 3x3 Championships.

PNG’s Need for FIBA Foundation Youth Leaders

Sere first heard about FIBA Foundation’s Youth Leadership course via an email sent out to all National Federations. As he was already executing many related programs in PNG, he was nominated to attend the sessions.

At the FIBA Foundation Youth Leadership program, Sere zeroed in on three SDGs: SDG 3 - good health and well-being, SDG 5 - Gender Equality, SDG 11 - Sustainable Cities and Communities, and SDG 13 - Climate Action.

Outlining his learning from the Youth Leadership program, Sere says:

“I learnt how to give the best when you are coaching a local club or a national team and as part of that, I’ve taken that as one of my learning pillars to give the best to the teams I coach.”

Sere currently runs basketball clinics across the country, with a special focus on reaching out to rural areas. While rugby remains the most popular sport in PNG, basketball is fast catching up.

Hoops for Health in Papua New Guinea

Tuberculosis, in particular, is a unique health challenge in PNG. In this regard, Sere highlights PNG’s National Federation’s partnership with PNG’s Olympic Committee, its health department and local NGOs, where they travel to churches, schools and work places to raise awareness on health, and other SDGs.

Observing the significance of Hoops for Health in PNG, Sere says:

“I personally think Hoops for Health is a vehicle for change in PNG. It has the potential and drive to change people’s mindsets and also identify local talents for national and international events. It is also a pathway to keep youths away from getting involved in illegal activities and engaging more with basketball.”

Making Basketball Accessible to All

Recently, Sere also attended the FIBA Plus workshops in Australia. The workshops built on Sere’s insights from the FIBA Foundation Youth Leadership program. Besides exchanging stories with participants on how they overcame obstacles within their own countries, Sere learnt crucial managerial techniques around how to run associations, clubs, and federations.

 

Traveling around PNG remains expensive, and Sere’s goals and plans for the future are to ensure that “basketball resources and education” become “accessible to everyone who has a smartphone”.

Beyond basketball itself, clearly what matters to Sere is imparting the larger message that comes attached to it.

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The FIBA Foundation is the social and legacy arm of FIBA that addresses the role of sports and particularly basketball in society, preserving and promoting basketball’s values and its cultural heritage.

The FIBA Foundation believes that basketball has the power to empower, educate and inspire youth and facilitates this by implementing Basketball For Good projects around the world.

 

FIBA