Vastly different from the last time the world saw him, a mellower Zidane came to Cairo on a humanitarian mission, writes Reem Leila Though he was sent off 14 times during his football life, which would include his notorious headbutt in last year's World Cup final in which his legendary career came to an inglorious end, French superstar Zeinédine Zidane does have a softer side, and it showed in abundance during his three-day stay in Cairo last week. The football icon was in Cairo starting 31 October to launch a home for handicapped street children as part of a worldwide programme aimed at helping the most disadvantaged youngsters. The former Real Madrid ace held a press conference conducted by the National Council for Childhood and Motherhood (NCCM) last Thursday and participated in a mini- championship match with Egyptian children the following day, in which the midfield maestro showed off some of his skills. Zidane related to the children his life journey in football and about the life of professional players. During Zidane's visit, the NCCM signed a protocol with a French dairy product company, for which Zidane is world ambassador, to grant Egypt LE1 million within the framework of a renewable two-year agreement to provide more than 80 handicapped and homeless children with shelter, healthcare and education. "It gives me immense pleasure to inaugurate a home for the handicapped street children of Egypt," Zidane said. Should the project prove successful, more such homes can be built to house as many disabled street children as possible. At the press conference, Zidane refrained from taking any football-relevant questions. The press corps had been ready to fire at him several questions about his attack on the Italian Marco Materazzi which earned Zidane a red card in the 2006 World Cup final. Zidane later said, and Materazzi admitted, that the Italian had said something derogatory about Zidane's sister. France ultimately lost the World Cup to Italy on penalties. Both Zidane and Materazzi were suspended and fined for their infractions by FIFA. Despite the incident, Zidane was controversially voted the best player of the World Cup. The care home, set up in the Dar Al-Salam district, will provide children with physical, psychological and educational support, with an end objective to re-unite them with their families. Face for Children in Need, a charity NGO, in cooperation with the NCCM, will equip the premises with furnishings and equipment necessary for housing children. The NGO will also operate and manage the shelter as well as hire and train the staff. "The shelter specifically targets handicapped street children because they are more vulnerable than healthy children since it is more expensive for a family to look after handicapped children than those who are able-bodied," Mushira Khattab, secretary-general of the NCCM, explained. Part of the funding of the protocol will go to research studies to implement microfinance schemes for poor families. "Fighting poverty is not done by providing people with only food and shelter. It is much better to help them work in order to earn money to be able to support their families," Khattab said. It is hard to tell how many children are living on the streets of Egypt, but one thing is clear; the numbers are huge and certainly growing. With the difficulty of quantifying the phenomenon, studies estimate that there are anywhere between 200,000 and two million homeless children in the country, most of them in Cairo and Alexandria governorates. The children lead an unhealthy and often dangerous life that leaves them deprived of their basic needs for protection, guidance, and supervision and exposes them to various forms of exploitation and abuse. "Undoubtedly I will be gratified when all the children of the world enjoy care, safety and protection," Zidane told journalists. The NCCM began developing the National Plan of Action for Street Children involving all concerned partners. During the press conference, Khattab said that the focus will be on children already living in harsh conditions, ensuring that they receive access to the basic services they are deprived of. The rehabilitation and reintegration of street children back into society will be the focus, along with changes to the 1996 child law that will describe street children as victims and at risk rather than as deviants and criminals, as is currently the case. Zidane, who says he is proud of his Algerian origin, has travelled extensively since he hung up his soccer shoes to help in solving the social problems affecting children around the world. He recently participated in laying the foundation stone of schools for children in Indonesia and inaugurated a microfinance project to provide families with job opportunities in Bangladesh. "Here we are today with you to contribute to dealing with an issue, which I am totally aware is considered a high priority to the Egyptian society, namely street children," Zidane said. "I am calling upon the private sector and all concerned authorities to exert more effort to realise the welfare of children, solve their problems, and significantly participate in providing them with the proper means which can help them in leading a decent life." Zidane also announced Egypt's participation for the first time in the Danone Nations Cup for children aged between 10 and 12. The competition brings 600 children from 40 countries across the world. The competition is to be launched in France next year in July under the supervision of FIFA and the French Football Federation. Zidane, along with two of his three sons, played a friendly match in Wadi Degla in Maadi with Egyptian children who had the time of their lives playing with one of the sport's all-time greats. Needless to say, the match ended 9-3 in favour of Zidane's team. Zidane led France to the 1998 World Cup and the 2000 European Championships. A central figure for Juventus and more so for Real Madrid, Zidane was selected world Footballer of the Year three times. He retired from club and international football after the 2006 World Cup. Zidane visited Egypt once before, in 2001, when he played against Cairo club Ahli which beat Real Madrid 1-0 in a friendly. Zidane had just signed for Real from Juventus for what was then a record transfer fee of almost $90 million.
