Eto'o arrives tonight for FIFA program

Cameroon superstar Samuel Eto’o will arrive in Ghana tonight to help FIFA promote its 11 for Health programs in the West Africa, starting Tuesday.

Eto’o, alongside FIFA Chief Medical Officer Prof Jiri Dvorak are expected Ghana tonight along with FIFA’s rising medic Dr. Prince Pambo who has been a key advocate for the FIFA programme.

Eto’o, Professor Dvorak and Dr Pambo will be arriving from Sierra Leone where they have been based from the past two days on another health programme.

Eto’o and Dvorak visit communities affected by Ebola in Sierra Leone, and will evaluate the effectiveness of the emergency campaign 11 against Ebola.

The 11 against Ebolacampaign was launched last year by FIFA and the World Bank. Top players such as Cristiano Ronaldo, Didier Drogba and Neymar joined forces with FIFA to highlight simple public health messages, and to help prevent the spread of the Ebola virus.

Known for his philanthropic and humanitarian work, Eto’o will use his visit in Sierra Leone to interact with children affected by the Ebola epidemic, while also using the opportunity to communicate health preservation messages in communities and schools.

“Football is the pleasure of being together and a safe way to improve health. To stay fit you have to be disciplined and discipline is a great tool to educate young people about a healthier lifestyle,” Eto’o said.

The FIFA 11 for Health campaign, which uses football to help improve children’s knowledge, attitudes and behaviour towards vital health issues, has been a significant success in many African nations since being introduced ahead of the 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa.

The program embraces the power of football and scientific research to inspire a healthier world and better health among young people, so that they can live life to the full. It provides guidance to help tackle the most frequent causes of diseases such as HIV/ AIDS, tuberculosis, malaria, diabetes and obesity.