A youth delegation from American Samoa, that participated in the first Pacific Youth and Sports Conference in New Zealand, has won funding for a soccer programme.
The US$20,000 is to implement a project that will see hundreds of youth playing soccer to lose weight and stay healthy.
Oceania Football Federation, which sponsored the conference, announced at the event the availability of US$100,000 for projects that will link sports with positive social development.
The American Samoa delegation submitted a project called RESULTS or recreation, exercise, soccer, you loose trim and slim.
The project will see 132 youngsters who are obese or diabetic play recreational soccer twice a week for 16 weeks.
The first group will then move on to the next stage, while another group will begin the programme.
The project will last a year and will be launched in 2011.
By the end 2011, 396 obese or diabetic youth would have gone through the programme.