00:00For its third edition, The Last Last, an event organized by the association, The Future in Kotonou,
00:08brings together teams from Benin, Togo, Nigeria and Ghana.
00:12The tournament gathers players, families and partners from across West Africa around a shared passion, basketball.
00:19We are at the end of the year, so the idea was, well, it's a festive period.
00:24We thought of bringing people together from different countries, inviting participants from several nations
00:29so that young people could meet, celebrate together and create connections.
00:33Right now, for example, this allows me to discover other talents, new moves I didn't know before.
00:38It also lets me learn. So overall, it brings me something extra and I think it also benefits others.
00:45In a context marked by persistent political tensions in West Africa,
00:49this initiative, both a unifying tool and a symbol of regional unity, highlights a simple truth.
00:55On the court, respect, fair play and the unity of people takes precedence over divisions.
01:00It's true that West Africa is affected by small political plagues, which involves actions that are undesirable in democracies.
01:09For us, the youth reassure us that they continue to live and thrive as long as they are given opportunities outside political affairs and political divisions.
01:18I'm in Benin in Kotonou for the first time, very happy to be here.
01:24I think it's a very good initiative because it promotes a lot of development in Africa and especially in Benin.
01:31The event also includes sexual education awareness sessions for young athletes to promote health, responsibility and autonomy.
01:39For the end-of-the-year celebrations, the association made a strong gesture of solidarity by donating food supplies to an orphanage in Kotonou,
01:49embedding the event in a true civic-minded initiative.
