International Day of Play celebrated with calls for more playtime

“We would play all sorts of games, climbing trees, bathing in the ponds, and covering the whole neighborhood on foot,” says Brian Ngao, a 29-year-old businessman in the city.

Playtime, in his younger days, meant exploring landscapes and innovating toys.

Today, though, a lot has shifted. So much so that the United Nations has ideated a day dedicated to safeguarding a child’s fundamental right to play. June 11 marked the first International Day of Play, which, according to the UN, “creates a unifying moment at global, national, and local levels to elevate the importance of play.”

So, how important is play to a child? “Play is the foundation for everything,” says Ms. Monica Leshamta, the headmistress of Our Lady of Mercy Primary School, Shauri Moyo, where the event to mark the day was held.

“Use of hands is important for the development of children. During play, they also learn a lot of values, including love, care, sharing, and teamwork.”

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Shaheen Nilofer, the UNICEF representative to Kenya, says that playing is crucial for a child’s growth and physical and cognitive development. She further called for the preservation of playgrounds and protection from land grabbers.

“Slowly by slowly, we’ve seen open parks, open gardens, and spaces have been taken away by new buildings,” she said.

Research has shown a higher frequency of obesity, brittle bones, and lifestyle diseases among young children, which experts attribute to the sedentary lifestyle among children, especially in the city.

Shaheen called for policy implementations that ensure all malls and public buildings have space where children can engage in play.

“It’s also important to ensure children with disabilities also enjoy play,” she said, encouraging children to minimize time spent on gadgets like mobile phones, and asked parents to join their children in play.

Experts say that our current culture is less friendly to play and that children may be unable to explore all its possibilities: Elizabeth Waitha is Education Officer with UNICEF, Kenya.

“There’s a need for all of us to come together and ensure that children are engaged in meaningful play and not just as an afterthought. The community and government need to work with children to invent games and spaces to be more creative and innovative to create collaboration, leadership skills, and creativity,” says Elizabeth.

Nilofer says play builds essential and transferable physical, social, cognitive, communication, and emotional life skills at all ages, and its positive impact on promoting tolerance and resilience and facilitating social inclusion, conflict prevention, and peacebuilding. 

She called on all Kenyans to acknowledge that play and recreation are essential to the health and well-being of children and promote the development of creativity, imagination, self-confidence, self-efficacy, and a sense of responsibility, as well as physical, social, cognitive, communication, and emotional strength and skills.

Dr. Gichuri Ndegwa, representing the Ministry of Education, said the government is committed to supporting play. “Physical education (PE) is part of the curriculum,” he said.

The Deputy Director of Special Education, Maulid Ali, said the government gives grants and bursaries to place children with disabilities in inclusive setups in areas of play and has adapted special games for learners with disabilities.