Around 150 Myanmar children will participate in a one-day football clinic on World Milk Day, 1 June. The event is the first that has been organized by the Embassy of the Netherlands in cooperation with the Myanmar Football Federation and Dutch Lady.
The clinic will be given by football players from the Myanmar national women’s football team. Under the joyful guidance of their female role models, the children will be inspired and informed about the importance of good nutrition and exercise, according to a recent statement.
The children are from an orphanage called Full Moon Children Development Family which is located near Bago. They will be transported by bus from their orphanage to the artificial football fields near Thuwanna Stadium. There they will have lunch and welcome the stars of Myanmar’s female football team. For two hours, they will enjoy simple training exercises that will be given by the football players of the national football team. After this, there will be a Meet&Greet where the children will have the opportunity to ask questions to football players of the national football team.
The Myanmar national football team has a rich history in women’s football. The team was three time runner-up in the Southeast Asian Games, in 1997, 2003, 2005. Myanmar also triumphed twice in the AFF Women's Championship in 2004 and 2007. This year, under the guidance of the Dutch coach Roger Reijners, the team will try to win the 2016 AFF Women's Championship that will be hosted in Mandalay.
The statement notes that while many existing norms discourage women’s athletics, the Southeast Asian games that took place in Myanmar in 2013 appeared to have had a positive effect on the view of women in sport. When sport is seen as an issue of national pride, women’s performance appears to be more acceptable, their participation can be seen as a patriotic duty. The fact that the 2016 AFF Women's Championship will be hosted in Mandalay can therefore provide a unique opportunity to raise awareness on the importance of exercise and good nutrition for both women and men.
Milk is an important part of a healthy balanced diet and World Milk Day provides the perfect opportunity to spread the word. World Milk Day is an observance that has been held on June 1 since 2001. It was initiated by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) to celebrate milk as a global food.