Robert Katende Initiative

Robert Katende Initiative is a non-profit organization that helps youngsters in the slums realize their full potential through chess by integrating principles of the game with management of daily challenges in life and enhancing abstract thinking, creativity and innovation. The Academy was started in 2004 by Coach Robert Katende who introduced chess in the slums of Katwe. Today, Robert Katende Initiative serves five different slums in Kampala, seven villages in Gulu and one community in Jinja, Uganda.

It is through chess that Robert Katende Initiative empowers and prepares participants for a formal education, enrolling and supporting those who would otherwise have no chance to go to school. Through collaboration with partners and friends, the program has also enrolled youths in various vocational training projects, enabling them to develop self-reliance.

The idea is to focus on each participant as an individual. As life coaches, Robert Katende Initiative leaders help youth to work toward attainment of their life goals. In the 12 years since its founding, the program has been able to restore hope, instill discipline, nurture good character, educate and develop leaders who have also excelled, some of whom have even become national and international chess players.

The learners pay no fees to be a part of Robert Katende Initiative and they experience a welcoming atmosphere. The leadership at Robert Katende Initiative knows that not everyone participating will turn out to be a great chess player, but the greater aim is to enable everyone to achieve their full potential in life.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IQyrSRy9-tw