Honourable Patrick Simmons, Minister of Youth Empowerment and Sports, on Wednesday 25th July 2012, joined counterparts from 42 member countries of the Commonwealth at the Sixth Commonwealth Sports Ministers Meeting (6CSMM) hosted by Hugh Robertson, MP, UK Minister of Sport and The Olympics.
The meeting, which was opened by Commonwealth Secretary-General, HE Kamalesh Sharma, focused on the important contribution sport and physical activity can make to development efforts across the Commonwealth.
Ministers discussed various principles, as well as policy options to maximise the contribution of sports to human and social development. In the Communique issued at the close of the meeting, the changing landscape of Sport across the Commonwealth was reflected, and the need for the Commonwealth to take a proactive stance to combat threats to the integrity of sport.
The Ministers considered key principles for strengthening “Sport for Development and Peace (SDP)”, emphasising efforts should:
- Be linked to the Commonwealth’s shared commitment to promoting development, democracy and diversity;
- Leverage sustainable and quality sport activity and be intentionally planned to realise specific development goals;
- Be integrated with the development sector;
- Fully involve intended beneficiaries and their communities in all aspects of planning and programming;
- Include mechanisms to safeguard leaders and participants, in particular children and those vulnerable to gender-based violence;
- Be designed on the basis of evidence-based models, and conducted with systematic measurement of progress and appropriate monitoring and evaluation
Grenada High Commissioner HE Ruth Rouse
The Ministers also expressed their concern about a range of issues threatening the integrity of sport, namely governance and transparency issues; match-fixing and illegal sports betting; doping ad issues related to safeguarding sport participants. Ministers warned these issues have the potential to compromise the contribution of sports to development goals.
Minister Simmons is currently attending the Games of the XXX Olympiad, where ten Grenadian Athletes will compete in a variety of disciplines including Track and Field, Swimming and Taekwondo.
The Minister was accompanied to the meeting by HE Ruth Elizabeth Rouse, High Commissioner for Grenada.
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