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The “United Nations Global Programme on the Security of Major Sporting Events, and Promotion of Sport and its Values as a Tool to Prevent Violent Extremism”, UNOCT convened a High-Level Meeting on the Prevention of Violent Extremism through Sports on 18 September, 2020 and an international Expert Group Meeting on 21-23 September, 2020 jointly with the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations (UNAOC), the United Nations Interregional Crime and Justice Research Institute (UNICRI), and the International Centre for Sport Security (ICSS) through its initiative, Save the Dream. Both events preceded the launch of a series of initiatives which include, inter alia, the development of a guide for policymakers, a training handbook, a global campaign and a grant- awarding mechanism for local civil society organizations (CSOs) working on sports-based prevention of violent extremism (PVE).
The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and Security Council resolution 2419 (2018) on Youth, Peace and Security 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 contributions sport and culture make to the empowerment of youth and women, individuals and communities as well as to health, education and social inclusion objectives”. More recently the United Nations Security Council unanimously adopted resolution 2535 (2020) calling on United Nations entities to improve capacity building by integrating the Youth, Peace and Security agenda into their technical assistance plans.
The virtual high-level meeting featured discussions between senior United Nations Officials, Member States and international organizations representatives, policymakers, and sports personalities committed to the fight against violent extremism. The event was followed by an international Expert Group Meeting where representatives from governments, international and regional organizations, sport bodies, academia and CSOs shared experiences and discussed actionable good practices of sports-based interventions aimed at preventing and countering violent extremism that can inspire the inclusion and further acknowledgment of sports within national and regional action (PCVE) action plans.
The Expert Group Meeting prioritized interactive discussions based on a participatory methodology. It kickstarted a consultative mechanism aimed at providing the Global Programme’s partners with insights and technical advice on sport as a tool to prevent violent extremism and, when appropriate, provide a source of expertise and knowledge in support of capacity building and research activities.
Subsequently, working groups will be established comprising of experts and nominated officials. A secure portal to promote regular interactions, facilitate exchange of information and document sharing between International Experts will be made available. This will help prepare the implementation of follow- up activities through the Working Group on preventing and countering violent extremism conducive to terrorism (PCVE) of the Global Counter-Terrorism Coordination Compact, for continued engagement with the relevant United Nations entities.
Source: UN Office of Counter-Terrorism