George Butau startet a chess in poverty project in Capetown, South Africa last December. Already 231 kids is in his project and the number is growing fast.
George has a passion for the game of chess and in December last year he took the small savings that he had and started a project introducing chess to the kids in and around the communities where he lives.
George tells that kids in the these communities spend much of their time roaming the streets and sitting in street corners. Crime is rampant in these communities and includes acts of violence, gangsterism, thefts and burglaries. There are also high levels of substance, drug and alcohol abuse, high levels of teenage pregnancies, high levels of underage drinkers, high levels of school dropouts and poor pass rates in the schools. It is against such a worrying and disturbing background that he decided to start this chess project. The project help them keep kids off the streets and develop better mindsets, help boost their IQ and creativity. It helps them to focus on better things in life, help them to improve their academic performances and also more importantly help build safer communities.
The kids in the project are mostly from poor families who are struggling to put a plate of food on their tables and during the week funds permitting George gives them snacks after chess practices. His challenges are shortage of chess equipment - chess sets chess boards, chess literature books and any related chess material. The project also facing a challenge with space as the shack that they're using has become so small to accommodate the kids forcing them to do our chess programs outside.
