Ethiopia to get a kick out of football

YOUNG football fans across Bolton are being asked to help design a new school team kit which will be exchanged with one designed by schoolchildren in Ethiopia.

The competition is part of "Score Ethiopia", a football- based fundraiser aimed at providing everything from a pitch to showers to the Gondar region of Ethiopia. The campaign is being spearheaded by ex-England footballer John Barnes.

"Score Ethiopia" has been launched by Wash & Go shampoo which has teamed up with education charity, Link Ethiopia.

It all kicks off with an awareness raising initiative, with primary schools taking part in a kit exchange. Wash & Go's Helen Austin explains: "Ethiopia is still one of the world's five poorest countries. Yet even in the face of adversity, one passion that its people share is football.

"So, we're asking children across England to combine their love of the beautiful game with a splash of flair and imagination by designing a football kit for a school in Ethiopia. In the meantime, children of the same age in Ethiopia will be doing exactly the same thing."

Winning schools will be treated to a visit by their Ethiopian counterparts and John Barnes to exchange the two kits.

Schools can get involved with a host of fun and quirky fundraising ideas. Any schools which have not been contacted but wish to take part in the scheme should contact the Score Ethiopia hotline on 0161 828 5400 or visit www.linkethiopia.org/score