SOME 150 children from the parish of St Catherine will participate in the 13th and penultimate Digicel/JFF Grassroots Festival, which will be held at the Prison Oval in Spanish Town,St Catherine today.

The day will begin with a coach’s education session at the Prison Oval Officers’ Club starting at 10:00 am and end with the festival, which begins at 1:30 pm.

Sponsored by Digicel/Wata and Bigga, the grass roots programme is aimed at creating an enjoyable environment for children between the ages six and 12 years old to be exposed to some of the rudiments of the game of football through participation in these festivals, which are organised on a parish basis.

Since the start of the programme, some 1,400 children have participated throughout 12 parishes. In addition, some 350 coach educators have been introduced to the mechanics of getting the targeted age group to learn easier.

The St Catherine Football Association, which will host today’s festival, has invited children from various all-age, primary and preparatory schools in the parish.

The grass roots programme is a three-year programme and is currently approaching the end of the first year.

The coordinator of the programme on behalf of the JFF is Andre Virtue.