Peace Beyond the Pitch: Prevention of Violent Extremism through

 

Sports

Online, 28 September 2023

08:00 AM New York Time; 14:00 PM Madrid Time; 21:00 PM Tokyo Time

Concept Note

Background and rationale

In 1981 the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) established 21st September as the International Day

of Peace to commemorate a day devoted to strengthening the ideals of peace. In 2011 the UNGA voted

unanimously for this date to be a period of non-violence and cease-fire. Each year, on the International

Day of Peace, a different theme and planned series of events is celebrated accordingly.

Sports go beyond borders defined by nations, cultures, socioeconomic statuses, and politics. They serve

as a means of social cohesion, bridging gaps, and as a tool to tackle a wide array of societal and economic

issues. This contribution extends to supporting the attainment of the Sustainable Development Goals

(SDGs). The Sustainable Development Agenda for 2030 recognizes the “growing contribution of sport and

culture to the realization of development and peace in the promotion of tolerance and respect as well as

the empowerment of youth and women, individuals and communities.”

Throughout history, sports have held a pivotal role in spreading positive ideals universally, transcending

civilizations and cultural differences. This characteristic positions sports as a potent medium for fostering

initiatives aimed at cultivating peace and preventing and countering instances of violent extremism.

Notably, the younger generation has taken the lead in nurturing ongoing dialogues concerning

peacebuilding and progress within societies.

To Commemorate the International Day of Peace, on 28 September the Global Sports Programme will

hold a 90–min online discussion on Peace Beyond the Pitch: Prevention of Violent Extremism through

Sports, aimed at emphasizing the power of sport as a tool to prevent violent extremism (PVE)so to directly

pursue the SDGs.

The Global Programme on the Security of Major Sporting Events, and Promotion of Sport and Its Values as

a Tool to Prevent Violent Extremism (Global Sports Programme) is led by the United Nations Office of

Counter-Terrorism (UNOCT), through its Programme Office in Madrid, in partnership with the UN

Interregional Crime and Justice Research Institute (UNICRI), the UN Alliance of Civilizations (UNAOC) and

the International Centre for Sport Security (ICSS), and in close consultation with the UN Counter-Terrorism

Committee Executive Directorate (CTED). The Global Sports Programme’s key objectives are to a) assist

Member States in protecting vulnerable targets in the context of Major Sporting Events, and b) leverage

the power of sports and its values to strengthen social cohesion and build resilience to violent extremism.

The Global Sports Programme serves as a platform for thousands of experts, policymakers, and

practitioners including 244 National Focal Points (NFPs) nominated by 118 Member States for substantive

engagement vis-a-vis programmatic activities, and sport federations, associations, athletes and civil

society organizations to share knowledge and perspectives benefitting all.

Existing international frameworks and initiatives

The UN Security Council, in its resolution 2419 (2018), recognizes the growing contribution of sport and

culture to the realization of development and peace in its promotion of tolerance and respect and

contributions it makes to the empowerment of youth and women, individuals, and communities. Several

UN agencies and specialized bodies have placed significant efforts and initiatives to leverage on sports for

the advancement of peace and development.

The UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA) Inter-Agency Group on Sport for

Development and Peace (IAGSDP) strives to advance the role of sport as a tool for development, including

through the implementation of the UN Action Plan on Sport for Development and Peace, promotes

effective collaboration between organizations at the national and regional levels, including the exchange

of best practices, and encourages the inclusion of sport in pertinent intergovernmental processes. This is

done in part by implementing the UN Action Plan on Sport for Development and Peace.

On its part, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) provides

Member States with assistance, counsel, and guidance, in order to create or enhance their sports policies.

Furthermore, the Youth Crime Prevention through Sport initiative of the United Nations Office on Drugs

and Crime (UNODC) promotes sports to deter crime and aid in the development of resilience in vulnerable

kids. The initiative's objective includes enhancing young people's life skills to lower risk factors for crime,

violence, and drug use through positively impacting the behavior of at-risk adolescents. A cooperative

effort to "Strengthen Youth Resilience through Sport: Using sport to promote positive youth development

and social change to prevent crime, violence, and drug use” has also been ongoing with the International

Olympic Committee (IOC) since 2022, as part of the Youth Crime Prevention through Sport initiative.

The 8th

review of the United Nations Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy A/RES/77/298, encourages

Member States, United Nations entities, regional and subregional organizations and relevant actors to

consider instituting mechanisms to involve youth in the promotion of a culture of peace, tolerance and

intercultural and interreligious dialogue and develop, as appropriate, an understanding of respect for

human dignity, pluralism and diversity, including, as appropriate, through education programmes, as well

as sports and physical activities, that could prevent and discourage their participation in acts of terrorism,

violent extremism conducive to terrorism, violence, xenophobia and all forms of discrimination.

Following UNOCT’s mandate, the Global Sports Programme provides direct support to Member States as

well as issued a “Guide for Policymakers for The Use of Sport for the Prevention of Violent Extremism” and

a Handbook for “Preventing Violent Extremism through Major Sporting Events” to leverage the full

potential of the use of sport and its values for PVE goals. Furthermore, the Programme’s highly successful

global media campaign “#MoreThanAGame” was launched in partnership with the Generation Amazing

Foundation highlighting inspiring stories of youth, alongside professional footballer Nadia Nadim, to

promote the power of sport to make real, positive change.

Objectives

• Recognize new actions and good practices that use sports for peace and as a tool to PVE

• Facilitate, through the Connect and Learn Platform, a permanent forum of discussion and

knowledge sharing at the local, national, regional, and international levels