NBA Africa launches basketball programme for students with disabilities

Afd Director Anne Gael Chapuis (centre) demonstrates her basketball skills alongside Brian Rague (left), a basketball Experience Coach at the Isinya School for the Deaf on March 5, 2026. [Courtesy, Standard]

The Agence Française de Développement (AFD) Group, in collaboration with NBA Africa, launched the Disability Inclusion component of the ongoing Basketball Experience (BE) programme in Kenya at Isinya School for the Deaf in Nairobi on Thursday.

The event brought together educators, development partners, and community leaders to highlight the role of basketball in empowering young people, fostering life skills and promoting social inclusion for children of all abilities. 

It was attended by Principal Secretary State Department for Youth Affairs & Creative Economy Fikirini Jacobs, Ambassador of France to Kenya Arnaud Suquet, AFD Director for Kenya Anne-Gaël Chapuis, Senior Director and Country Operations Lead NBA Kenya Michael Finley, Assistant Director for Quality Assurance Ministry of Education Eliud Wambua and Secretary General Kenya Red Ahmed Idris.

Funded by AFD and implemented by the Kenya Red Cross, the Disability Inclusion component expands the Basketball Experience programme by integrating children with hearing, visual, and physical impairments into structured basketball and life skills training.

The initiative aims to ensure that every child regardless of ability can develop confidence, teamwork, discipline and leadership skills, both on and off the court. This builds on a previous Jr. NBA clinic hosted in Nairobi in April 2025 which engaged more than 200 participants, including young people with hearing impairments. 

The launch event featured adapted basketball demonstrations and discussions showcasing how sport can be tailored to create safe, engaging, and empowering learning environments for children with disabilities. The programme will be rolled out across Nairobi, Kajiado, Machakos, and Kiambu counties, benefiting 32 specialised schools for children with disabilities.

“The launch of the Disability Inclusion component of the Basketball Experience programme reflects our shared commitment to making sports accessible to all. Together with the NBA and our Kenyan partners, AFD is proud to support an initiative that uses sport not only to develop talent but also to promote inclusion, confidence and opportunity for young people across Kenya,” AFD Director for Kenya Anne-Gaël Chapuis said.

The programme will equip coaches and educators with practical tools to deliver inclusive sessions that support holistic youth development and community impact. This new component builds on the broader Basketball Experience programme launched in July 2024 across 48 schools in Kenya. With this expansion, the total number of beneficiary schools will increase to 128 with an additional 48 schools co-opted in the classic component in 2026.