Addressing gender relations through sport for development programmes in Zambia: An analysis of the lived experiences of female peer leaders

Abstract

The field of Sport for Development (SfD) has grown in prominence in recent decades, and is now well established in the Global South, where non-governmental organisations (NGOs) deliver sport-based programmes in an attempt to address existing structures of inequality (Spaaij et al. 2018). In recent years, SfD has seen a growing focus on the empowerment of women and girls which has been positioned as a key to improving marginalised communities and societies (Lindsey et al. 2017). An increasing number of SfD NGOs have also adopted peer education programmes, which are dependent upon a volunteer workforce comprised of local unemployed youth who operate as peer leaders (Schulenkorf et al. 2023).

Despite the integral nature of peer leaders as the main implementer of SfD programmes, research into issues concerning their involvement in the field remains limited, particularly in the Global South (Mxekezo-Lallie and Burnett, 2022). This study addresses this gap by critically examining the lived experiences of female peer leaders in SfD programmes in Zambia, extending existing literature in a number of ways. First, the study presents the first-hand localised accounts of young women in SfD who, to date, remain overlooked and marginalised (Zipp et al. 2019). Second, it explores how SfD programmes feature in the broader trajectory of women’s lives; a rarity in SfD research which traditionally focuses heavily on ‘impacts’ and ‘outcomes’ (Jeanes and Lindsey, 2014). Third, as gender inequality is a stark reality which positions Zambian women and girls as subordinate to men (Mwaanga and Prince, 2016), this study examines how deeply rooted gender relations influence participation in SfD as a peer leader.

This qualitative study collected data across two fieldwork visits. During the visits primary data were collected through semi-structured and informal interviews with female peer leaders and also with other connected SfD actors. Across my fieldwork, a total of 46 individual interviews were undertaken, of which 27 were with female peer leaders, including some oriented towards a life history approach. Data collection was supported by ethnographic methods including participant observation and an ethnographic diary. Theoretical work on empowerment (Rowlands, 1995; 1997; Cornwall, 2016) and gender performativity (Goffman, 1956; Butler, 1990) informed the study and interpretation of data.

The key findings highlight the extent and varied scope of contextual influences that determine engagement with, and participation in, SfD programmes in Zambia. This is a vital insight for SfD programmes that are focused on empowering women and girls, as these internal and external constraints influence the extent to which SfD can foster or hinder empowerment processes (Rowlands, 1997). SfD programmes were found to provide a ‘safe space’ in which change on an individual level can occur, yet the research also demonstrated that young women are often constrained in applying these changes to situations outside of the SfD field. The programmes enable young women to occupy a traditionally masculine domain, developing their critical consciousness to collectively resist and challenge traditional gender norms. This links to the performative conception of gender, indicating how some young women are able to adopt an identity reflective of the new context they have moved into in sport, beyond identities typically prescribed to Zambian women (Butler, 1988; 1990). It also links to the relational nature of empowerment, and how the young women used the collective identity and connections they had formed in sport to facilitate change (Cornwall and Edwards, 2014).

To conclude, for SfD programmes to fully achieve their intended aims, this study advocates for a greater recognition of the ways in which gender influence young women in and around sport; further consideration of how to disrupt broader social structures of inequality by moving beyond an individualist focus; and differential support for peer leaders within SfD programmes dependent on the wider context of their lives.