Fifteen women rugby players from marginalized communities in Asia, including five from Vietnam, are heading to the Northern Ireland capital of Belfast to play in the ChildFund Pass It Back Cup, in the lead up to the Women’s Rugby World Cup 2017.

ChildFund Pass It Back is an innovative Sport for Development program led by ChildFund in partnership with World Rugby, Asia Rugby, and Women Win, delivering an integrated life skills and rugby curriculum for children and young people in disadvantaged communities across Asia.

Players from Laos, the Philippines and Vietnam will play under the banner of the South-East Asian Dragons and compete with teams from Belfast in the ChildFund Pass It Back Cup 2017 Belfast, a tag rugby event, at Belfast Harlequins RFC on August 21, the day before the Women’s Rugby World Cup Semi-Final. The event is supported by the Irish Rugby Football Union (IRFU).

“ChildFund Pass It Back was established for young people who face significant poverty and have few, if any, opportunities to get involved in organized sport,” said Mr. Chris Mastaglio, Director of ChildFund Pass It Back. “For young girls, the obstacles are even greater. This is a program that prioritizes gender equity and the inclusion of girls, so we decided to hold this event in the lead-up to the Women’s Rugby Cup Final to highlight how women and girls’ rugby is developing across the world.”

To date, more than 3,000 children and young people in Laos, the Philippines and Vietnam have benefitted from their participation in ChildFund Pass It Back, with girls making up over half of the players and coaches.

Mr. Mastaglio said that many of these girls have not left their province before, let alone flown on a plane to a different country. This is going to be such a great opportunity for them to see some of their roles models in action, and he thanked the IRFU for helping to make this happen.

VN Economic Times