ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Glob. Women’s Health
Sec. Quality of Life
From Court to Community: A Cost–Benefit Evaluation of a Community Sports Programme for Arab Women in Israel's Multiethnic Context
Provisionally accepted
- 1Ariel University, Ariel, Israel
- 2Department of Economics and Business Administration, Ariel University, Ariel, Israel
- 3Ariel University School of Health Sciences, Ari'el, Israel
- 4Department of Nursing, Ariel, Israel
- 5Ariel University, Ari'el, Israel
- 6Department of Health Systems Management, Ariel, Israel
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Background: Physical activity (PA) is a key determinant of women's physical, mental, and social well-being, yet participation in structured sports remains limited due to sociocultural norms, caregiving roles, and accessibility barriers. The Mamanet Cachibol League (Mamanet), a community-based sports initiative in Israel, addresses these barriers by fostering participation among mothers from diverse backgrounds. This study evaluates Mamanet's health and economic impacts among Arab women through a cost–benefit analysis (CBA) and quality-adjusted life year (QALY) framework. Methods: A quantitative pre–post evaluation was conducted with 174 Arab women participating in Mamanet teams across diverse geographic and socioeconomic contexts in Israel. The non-randomized design examined within-participant changes over a 10-month period, providing real-world evidence of programme effectiveness. Participants completed validated Hebrew and Arabic questionnaires before and after the intervention. Health-related variables included self-rated health, psychosomatic symptoms, physical activity, mental well-being, and social capital indicators. The economic evaluation incorporated reductions in healthcare utilization and medication costs, productivity gains, and QALY improvements, accounting for direct and opportunity costs. Results: Mamanet participation was associated with improvements in physical health outcomes, including a significant reduction in psychosomatic symptoms (p < 0.001, effect size = 0.75). Gains in mental well-being were observed but did not reach statistical significance (p = 0.09). Modest increases were found in social capital and community engagement. Economically, participation in the programme was associated with reduced healthcare use, lower absenteeism, and decreased medication expenditures, as well as enhanced productivity. The benefit–cost ratio (BCR) was 1.13, indicating that overall benefits exceeded programme costs. Conclusion: The Mamanet programme yields measurable health, social, and economic benefits for Arab women in Israel, demonstrating how culturally adapted, community-based interventions can reduce barriers to physical activity and promote health equity. Its low-cost, inclusive model offers a scalable framework for integrating women's sports into public health strategies and strengthening community resilience. Beyond Israel, the programme's principles affordability, inclusion, and engagement can inform policies supporting the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG), particularly those addressing gender equality, well-being, and reduced inequalities.
Keywords: Mamanet, Community sports, Women's Health, social capital, cultural adaptation, empowerment programmes, Cost-benefit analysis (CBA), Quality-Adjusted Life Years
Received: 07 Jul 2025; Accepted: 24 Nov 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Gonen, Barak, Eines, Birk and Tesler. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Limor Dina Gonen
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