PROJECT MBIO
The word ‘mbio’ is Swahili for running and Project Mbio is all about running!
The project runs as a collaboration between equitysport and Project Africa Athletics to build capacity and broaden the socioeconomic horizons for runners from rural Kenya.
The project is centred around locally driven interventions led by Nairobi based equitysport mentee; Grace Wang’ondu under the expert mentorship of the UK-based sports scientist and strength & conditioning coach; James Phillips.
The project was conceived to breakdown knowledge silos on injury prevention, performance-optimisation and athlete education and to disseminate global best practice to some of the most under-served athletic communities in the world.
At the heart of the project is the determination to see sustainable development lead the growth of running in the region, with equitysport working hard through our internship and mentorship programmes to develop the local workforce and facilitate significant job creation across the communities we are working.
PROJECT TIMELINE
April 2020: Grace Wang’ondu starts on project as part of her equitysport mentorship programme.
May 2020: Grace & James conduct needs analysis in collaboration with Project Africa Athletics staff to identify short, medium and long term needs of running communities in rural Kenya.
June 2020: Grace & James start working on the development of ‘anti-doping education resources’ to combat high doping test failures in East African runners.
June 2020: equitysport works to support Project Africa Athletics in the launch of Kimbia Coffee - the brainchild of Dan Tanui to reinvest prize money from European races.
July 2020: equitysport begins pilot of SMS education programme to deliver ‘anti-doping education resources’ to running communities with low bandwidth or no internet access.