Tanzania Deaf Sports Federation (TDSF)

About us

Tanzania Deaf Sports Federation (TDSF) is a national sports, cultural and recreation membership non- profit making and non-government organization dedicated to facilitate and develop sports, cultural, specially need of physically fitness with education and ethics activities undertaken around the country. TDSF legal status was established in 1996 and has been registered since in 2003. We are operating independently from other deaf or disability community organizations.

Our vision:
Whereas deaf people of all ages are more effectively participating in sports, cultural and recreation. Taking fully responsibility of recognition and obtained our rights for the same.

Our mission:
• Breaking the circle of barriers in developing, improving, promoting sports, cultural and recreation by enabling the empowerment, enhancement and strengthening the deaf culture and identity.
• Inculcate values into the deaf community through sports as part of social integration, character building and healthy lifestyle.
• Encourage coaches, trainers, and others who work with athletes to include the sign language with expertise in sports/performance vision as a part of a performance enhancement teams.

Objectives
• To ensure, maximize equal sporting, cultural and recreation opportunities’ that is a potential of deaf men, women and children.
• To encourage the deaf community to engage in sporting, cultural and recreation pursuits.
• To coordinate and facilitate the events of the Tanzania Deaflympics, national games and cultural events.
• To build, and benefit from relationships with the international deaf sporting community, development agencies, the private sector and the Government of Tanzania in pursuance of these objectives.
• To change negative attitudes towards disability by advocacy and lobbying campaigns aimed at reducing discrimination effects and attaining our rights through policies and legislations.
• To promote deaf sports, cultural and recreation without discrimination on the ground of religion, politics, economic, sex or race.
• To do all things necessary which is convenient to achieve any of these objects

What we do
As Deaf people we are own most powerful resources and our organization is working to achieve above objectives by gaining the skills needed to become effective implement programmes, campaigners and to-: build up our confidence in our own worth, abilities and rights, set up self- help initiatives to improve our sports, cultural and recreation standards that will enable the beneficiaries get good standard of living, take control of their own lives and campaign and advocate for equal rights.
TDSF encourages deaf men and women to come together into sports, cultural and recreation groups in order to better understand the situation we face, identify and tackle the causes of our suffering and oppression. Once sports, cultural and recreation groups are established then they join TDSF as ordinary member. TFSD does not see its role as a social service provider or to carry out work which is better done by others. Care is taken to ensure that TDSFs role is to strengthen the national events and programs. TDSF also seeks to influence governments, other development agencies, private sector and donors to adopt policies which are fully inclusive of deaf people in sports, cultural and recreation.

Simeon Corneli Mwakatobe is the Secretary General at the Tanzania Deaf Sports Federation ( TDSF).

For other net participants we can offer an expert guidance through trained staff, give an expert opinion, procure expert information and establish new contacts in the field of our work.