Essa al-Mannai, executive director of ROTA, Josep Maria Bartomeu, Barcelona president and Anthony Lake, executive director of UNICEF and artist Takashi Murakami support 1/11 campaign

Doha

FC Barcelona Foundation, Reach Out To Asia (Rota) and Unicef have together launched the ‘1 in 11’ campaign to extend educational opportunities to marginalised children in Bangladesh, Indonesia and Nepal.
The ‘1 in 11’ campaign, launched in New York on January 9, will raise funds through individual donations and a major art auction at Sotheby’s in London on February 12, featuring donated works by renowned artists including Takashi Murakami, Damien Hirst, Jeff Koons, Richard Serra and Shirin Neshat. Hirst and Murakami have created specially commissioned works of art featuring Lionel Messi, FC Barcelona player, Unicef Goodwill Ambassador, and President of the Lionel Messi Foundation. Murakami designed the campaign logo.
Globally, one in 11 primary school-age children – or 58 mn out of 650 mn children – are out of school. The majority are among the most disadvantaged and vulnerable: children living in areas affected by conflict; children in extreme poverty; children with disabilities; children from indigenous communities. In addition, in many schools, sports programming does not exist, even though studies have shown that including sports in school curricula can inspire children to attend and stay in school, lead to better physical health, and help to improve their grades.
Lending their voices, and their athletic ability, to ‘1 in 11’, Messi and international tennis champion and Unicef Goodwill Ambassador Serena Williams launched the "1 in 11" campaign film and ‘Keep Ups’ challenge – challenging people to keep a ball up in the air for at least eleven touches.
A special global premiere screening of the campaign film, featuring both Messi and Williams attempting their own ‘Keep Ups’ challenge, will take place at half time on the big screens at Camp Nou stadium during the FC Barcelona vs Atletico Madrid match today.
The funds raised by ‘1 in 11’ will focus initially on education programmes in three countries. In Indonesia, the campaign will support schools in six districts to include children with disabilities. In Nepal, UNICEF has worked with the government to identify 10 priority districts that will offer sports programming for children up to secondary school, particularly aimed at breaking down the societal barriers for children with disabilities and including them in school. In Bangladesh, the campaign’s focus will be on reaching out-of-school children.
The campaign will be extended to other countries at a later stage.
Through the ‘Keep Ups’ challenge, Messi and Williams are inviting their fans and followers to join, donate to the campaign and share their own ‘Keep Ups’ via social media and at www.1in11.org.
Messi said: “I’m supporting the 1 in 11 campaign because I believe every child has the right to fulfill their potential and realise their dreams. I believe that through sport, we can teach values of respect, teamwork and effort, and ultimately inspire children to attend and stay on in school.”
Williams stated: “In many countries, we take it for granted that every child has the right to receive a quality education, but ‘1 in 11’ children around the world do not enjoy that right – and without it, may never reach their full potential. We need to kick start global progress and get that number down to zero.”
Unicef Executive Director Anthony Lake noted: “Every child has the right to learn, to play, and to grow – and the ‘1 in 11’ campaign will help more children do so. ”
FC Barcelona President Josep Maria Bartomeu commented: “This partnership is a new step forward for our Foundation in the common goal of reducing the number of children that do not have access to basic education. Furthermore, sport will play an essential role in this work, a fact that makes us proud, as sport and education have always been part of our club’s identity.”
Rota director Essa al- Mannai said: “Rota is extremely honoured to take part in the ‘1 in 11’ campaign with Unicef and FC Barcelona Foundation. This campaign will further ROTA’s vision of a world in which all young people have access to the education and training they need to realise their full potential and shape the development of their communities.”