ANTA Group Extends Major Refugee UNHCR Program For Another 3 Years

ANTA Group is turning its three-year refugee commitment into a long-term play, keeping displaced children in Africa learning and active through targeted funding and sports gear. Over three years, the Chinese sportswear leader has supported more than 300,000 displaced children and youth in Burundi, Kenya, and Ethiopia, and it has now pledged to sustain a similar level of support for another three years following the Global Refugee Forum Progress Review in Geneva. 

How ANTA’s Support Breaks Down

From 2023 to 2025, ANTA Group committed $1.5 million in financial support and donated 1.2 million pieces of sporting apparel and equipment to displaced youth. These funds and products go directly into UNHCR’s Sports for Protection programs and its Primary Impact education initiative, which keeps refugee classrooms open by paying teachers and supplying learning materials so children can start, stay, and succeed in school.

The partnership is designed to do more than donate gear; it aims to build safe spaces where sport lowers the risk of violence, isolation, and dropouts while education offers a pathway to stability and long-term opportunity for refugee children.

Why Sports Is Central to ANTA’s CSR

Christina Li, Vice President of ANTA Group, framed the partnership as part of the company’s global CSR strategy linked to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals of No Poverty, Good Health and Well-being, Quality Education, and Reduced Inequalities. Li said, “We have long been committed to turning our vision into reality through global CSR initiatives,” stressing that sport can unite people regardless of background or nationality. In China, ANTA has already run multiple sports programs reaching nearly 10 million young people, and the refugee work extends that model to vulnerable communities worldwide.

By using sports as a bridge, ANTA Group positions itself not only as a performance brand but as a player in social cohesion, mental health, and youth development in some of the toughest environments.

On the Ground in Ethiopia

In September, Li and Arash Bordbar, Primary Impact lead at UNHCR, visited two refugee camps in Ethiopia to see how the partnership plays out in real life. At Bambasi refugee camp, which hosts around 16,000 refugees, Li kicked off a friendly football match supported by ANTA Group gear to highlight how play can lift spirits and build community. Li said that “Sport is a universal language that transcends all barriers and brings hope, joy and unity – even in the most challenging circumstances.”

Delivering in-kind donations to multiple African countries demanded meticulous sorting, international shipping, and last-mile logistics, but ANTA Group worked with partners to make sure both cash and goods reached refugee sites in Kenya and beyond as planned.

Private Sector’s Role and Tripartite Model

Arash Bordbar, Primary Impact lead at UNHCR, explained that, “The partnership with ANTA Group is a clear example of how private-sector engagement can expand opportunities and transform the lives of people forced to flee. By investing in purpose-driven education and sports programming – and co-creating solutions with partners like ANTA Group – we see how the private sector can play a vital role in addressing global challenges and creating lasting solutions.”

Wu Dan, Head of Overseas Project Department at the Chinese Red Cross Foundation, said, “Guided by the spirit of building a China-Africa community with a shared future, we have been working closely with UN agencies and enterprises, integrating resources and expertise from all parties. In the past two years, we have overcome a severe and complex international environment as well as numerous logistical challenges. We delivered international humanitarian aid supplies in three batches to displaced children in three African countries, helping them integrate into communities, return to school, and regain their optimistic spirit. We’ve achieved many ‘firsts’ through the tripartite collaboration, allowing us to contribute to the realization of the UN Sustainable Development Goals through humanitarian practice and advance the building of a global community with a shared future for humankind.”

What This Means for Retail and Brand Positioning

For a global sportswear label, this level of sustained humanitarian engagement strengthens brand equity with socially conscious shoppers, especially Gen Z and younger consumers who expect activism to be backed by measurable impact. By locking in another three years of support, ANTA Group signals that refugee inclusion and youth development are becoming embedded, not episodic, parts of its business story.

This approach also sets a precedent for other performance and athleisure brands: tie product, purpose, and long-term funding to credible partners like UNHCR, focus on clear metrics such as 300,000 youth reached and 1.2 million items donated, and show up physically in the communities where impact is claimed.