Generations For Peace and Jordan Olympic Committee celebrate International Day of Sport for Development and Peace

HRH Prince Feisal Al Hussein praises ongoing sport-for-peace activities around the world

Generations For Peace (GFP) and the Jordan Olympic Committee (JOC) celebrated the second International Day of Sport for Development and Peace (IDSDP) by inviting 96 youth from across Jordan to participate in sport-based games at their Al Hussein Youth Sport City headquarters. The youth, including both boys and girls aged 12-18, have been participating in ongoing peace-building activities at their schools this year organised by GFP with support from USAID. These programmes are dedicated to teaching young people conflict transformation skills using sport as a vehicle for behaviour change.

GFP and its volunteer youth leaders in the Middle East, Africa, Asia and Europe also celebrated with activities in the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Ghana, Kyrgyzstan, Nigeria, Pakistan, Palestine, Rwanda, Sri Lanka, South Sudan, Tunisia, Uganda, Yemen and Zimbabwe. The GFP activities demonstrated how local and traditional sport-based games can promote cooperation, solidarity, tolerance, understanding, and social inclusion at all levels. This global celebration of sport provided GFP’s 8,500 volunteers an opportunity to promote how teamwork, trust and respect remain catalysts for peace building and positive change in their own communities thanks to their continuous hard work all year round. GFP is the only peace-through-sport organisation officially recognised by the International Olympic Committee.

In Jordan, the JOC also marked IDSDP by promoting the importance of the Olympic Values through the Olympic Values and Education Programme (OVEP) activities. Over the last year the JOC has engaged thousands of young people in Jordan, promoting the importance of sport through OVEP.

HRH Prince Feisal Al Hussein, Founder and Chairman of GFP and President of JOC, said:

"Today is about recognising the power of sport and its ability as a universal language to bring long-lasting sustainable peace in times of conflict and violence, tackle serious human rights issues and promote tolerance and responsible citizenship. Generations For Peace and the Jordan Olympic Committee frequently use sport-based games as an entry point to engage with children and youth as a means of uniting people of all ages, nationalities, religions and abilities. Achieving meaningful behaviour change and true conflict transformation requires us to continue these dedicated efforts on an ongoing basis, but I believe today’s activities can raise awareness and encourage others to harness the power of sport to achieve long-term sustainable peace."

20 Years at #1: Your best source of news about the Olympics is www.aroundtherings.com, for subscribers only