Freetown, SIERRA LEONE – The Cricket 4 Schools initiative, launched by Cricket Sierra Leone, is rapidly gathering momentum, reaching an impressive 16,037 pupils within just two weeks of its rollout in the Western Area.
Spearheaded by 80 local cricket development officers, the program has made significant inroads across 64 schools—engaging 7,696 boys and 8,341 girls. Among the schools reached, 26 are primary schools, 22 are junior secondary schools, and 16 are senior secondary institutions.
This ambitious grassroots campaign is part of Cricket Sierra Leone’s broader national vision to introduce the sport to 100,000 children across the country by December 31, 2025. The plan includes cricket coaching clinics, inter-class and inter-house competitions, under-12 cricket festivals, and district-level tournaments involving primary, junior, and senior schools.
Supporting this massive effort are more than 200 Physical and Health Education (PHE) teachers, recently trained to facilitate cricket entry-level activities in schools.
The program kicked off with the registration of pupils using Cricket Sierra Leone’s data capture tools, after which students were introduced to the basics of the game through fun and interactive sessions.
With such rapid progress already made, the Cricket 4 Schools program is proving to be not just a sporting initiative, but a movement that is inspiring thousands of young Sierra Leoneans—especially girls—to take up the bat and ball. BT/10/6/2025
