Basketball is more than just a game.
It's my passion, my purpose and a tool for change.
Growing up in Agege, sometimes it's tough for me, and also tough for other
young kids, especially girls, because the society don't really
think girls can involve themselves in sports.
Rita is hoping to break the mold by finding
success in the classroom and on the basketball court.
She wants to help inspire her whole community.
But none of that will come easily.
The rooster's crow is the natural alarm clock in Agege,
a coastal community in Accra, Ghana.
Early mornings are bustling with activity for the fishermen,
students and market.
19 year old Rita Lamptey lives in Agege with her father and brother.
Her remaining four siblings reside in a nearby community
with their mother.
There's no water.
Getting water is like some meters away from my house.
Access to clean water is a significant obstacle for
many communities in Ghana, including Rita's.
Sometimes I do get to school late.
Sometimes I also get to school early.
After her chores, Rita heads to school.
She dreams of one day being an English professor,
but for now she's one of the first of her siblings on track to finish high school.
In Ghana, many women are married off before turning 18.
More than 40% of those married at an early age lack formal education.
Despite different circumstances, Rita knows she could easily
be like one of those girls.
I'm out with my friends and then come to think of it, those
in my community that don't have the chance to come to school.
And then due to that, they get pregnant at early age.
Whenever I think about it, I'm like, God, some of us
need to bring the opportunities out for these girls.
And then me having this opportunity, I think when I grow further,
I also give these opportunities to other girls in my community.
After a long day at school, Rita returns home and quickly
prepares for her basketball training.
She's determined to continue improving her game.
Basketball has helped motivate her in the classroom, and she sees
the sport as a way to bring positive change to her community.
Joining the DUNK basketball team helped change her life.
When I went to school, I saw these guys playing and I was like,
okay, basketball is a nice game.
There is good communication, there is teamwork.
So I need to join this game.
And I went, I told them I wanted to play.
They started training me and later one of them told me
there is a team called DUNK.
DUNK which stands for Developing Unity,
Nurturing Knowledge was founded in 2010.
It's a non profit organization that aims to empower at risk children
and youth in underserved communities in Ghana through
the transformative power of sports with a focus on basketball.
Today, Rita is here to join Coach Mo for personal training.
So Rita, the last time when you were playing the game,
I observed you were a bit weak with the left hand.
So today we're going to work on the left hand.
So I would demonstrate,
and then you try to do the same thing, all right?
And every time you have the ball, remember you need to stay low.
So if I'm here, I catch the ball - this position all the time
because that's how you play basketball, from low to high.
All right, so I have the ball now.
First, jab! Attack... cross.
Finish.
Remember, we're working on the left hand.
It's got to be difficult, but we keep trying.
Let's go.
Jab. Stay low, good!
You can just tell like it's somebody who has seen a lot of struggle.
So she really is trying to push herself out of that struggle,
and you can see the way she talks, the way she plays,
the way she socializes.
Life at home hasn't been easy for Rita.
Though tonight her mother is visiting for dinner,
her family isn't always together.
Rita's parents are divorced, leading to financial struggles
as they both face uncertainty at work.
This situation has placed a heavy burden on Rita,
navigating between parents for support.
I was not actually staying with them, I was staying with their cousin,
but when I came back, I realized they were not together anymore.
So I tried my best to bring them together, but it didn't work.
If I need something, I go to my mom.
If my dad doesn't understand something,
I just explain it to my mom.
Then my mom comes to explain my dad, and then he gets it and he's like,
OK, then I get what I'm saying, then that's it.
With their father struggling to make ends meet and earning
less than $100 a month as a carpenter,
basic necessities become a luxury.
This constant financial strain serves as a driving force for Rita to excel
in both her education and basketball career.
Rita and her brother do their best in school despite
their difficult financial reality.
There is an instance where I had to go back to school
and I didn't have a bag.
My shoes were spoiled.
Yeah, just two things.
So I had to get a bag and shoes. Without that I can’t go to school.
So I had to tell my dad.
And my dad was like, 'there's nothing going on,
there's no money'.
And by then the economy was very hard, so I had to go to my coach
and tell them, and they were like, 'okay, so we can help',
to the extent that they had to give me their own bags.
In addition to lending a hand to players like Rita
during tough moments,
DUNK focuses on merging basketball with education for youth in need.
Here, Rita gets extracurricular educational support to
keep her on track at school.
For us as an institution it is very important that whatever we do
on the court, we can also come to the classroom and also exhibit
our educational side.
I think we want to avoid a situation that we have kids who are good
on the basketball court but then in their classroom
they are falling behind.
So it's very important that it goes hand in hand.
Libraries at every DUNK centre make that a reality.
Only youth who participate in skills training and
educational classes at the library
are permitted to take part in basketball practice.
This has had a big impact on Rita, not only helping her
focus on her schooling, but also helping
to lend broader stability.
I'm very happy I have come this far because without DUNK
I don't think I'll be where I am.
I'll probably be part of this teenage pregnancy or
taking drugs because it's not been easy.
As important as the education is, a big part of the draw
is of course the basketball.
Today's the final training session before an upcoming game.
Ask for the box! Good job.
One... go ask for the ball.
Nice run, Ella.
As you all know, we are playing
DUNK Angels in Jamestown tomorrow.
Are we ready for that match?
I can't hear you. Are we ready?
Yeah!
Despite facing her own challenges, Rita remains dedicated to supporting
other young women. Through regular walks
in her neighborhood, she actively engages with the youth,
extending a helping hand to those in her community.
This also provides Rita with an opportunity to reflect.
There are these cases of teenage pregnancy, drug abuse and others.
So with the help of sports your mind is always like
'I have to go to the basketball court'.
There is no time for you to be like 'I have to go to the the boy who is
always calling me and be like you have to come to my house'.
Which means Rita doesn't just spend tons of time playing basketball,
she also loves to watch it.
She does her best to model her game off of her favorite player,
A’ja Wilson from the WNBA's Las Vegas Aces.
She is always at the centre or sometimes at the sideline.
When she gets the chance to shoot the ball, she shoots it.
DUNK has three locations and through further partnerships with schools,
works with thousands of young people.
Today is a highlight with Rita's Agege team heading across
Accra's coast to Jamestown, where they'll face off against
another DUNK squad.
Rita shows off her skills early on, opening the scoring.
In the end, the Agege side came out on top.
I think the score was 9 - 25.
We did our best because whenever we play them
it's quite challenging. But today we won.
Basketball has helped Rita grow and helps her pursue
an education and a brighter future. But she realizes
how rare that can be in her community.
Sometimes in my spare time I go to the seaside and see young boys
and young girls. and then the boys go for their fishing and then
when they are back, you see young girls as as early as 15 years
trying to take their fish and go and sell it in the market.
And these people are kind of deprived from education.
And I believe trhat with education added to their lives,
they will do better than just fishing.
And I think when I get the opportunity to change this,
I will really change it.
I will.
Thanks to her efforts, Rita looks well on her way
to making that difference.
What are sports all about?
We say they're about never giving up.
Sports Life every weekend on DW.