“Sport functions as a tool to improve the inclusion and well-being of people with disabilities,” Wilfried Lemke, the UN Special Adviser on Sport for Development and Peace, said at the celebration of the 20th anniversary of the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) in Bonn, Germany.

“With appropriate communication and know-how, sport can function as a powerful tool for transforming community attitudes and empowering individuals with disabilities through the acquisition of new physical and social skills, self-confidence and positive relationships,” he added.

Also today, Mr. Lemke gave an address on the importance of the paralympic movement to further the implementation of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.

That pact, which entered into force in May last year, asserts the rights to education, health, work, adequate living conditions, freedom of movement, freedom from exploitation and equal recognition before the law for the world’s estimated 650 million persons with disabilities. So far 142 countries have signed the treaty and 66 have ratified it.

Yesterday, the Special Adviser attended a forum in Frankfurt on advancing development through sport as South Africa prepares to host the football World Cup next year.

He has also expressed his support for this weekend’s Homeless World Cup in Milan, Italy, which will bring together 500 players from nearly 50 nations.

The initiative “has been uniting teams of homeless people to take a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to represent their country and change their lives forever,” Mr. Lemke said.

And it has a proven track record, he added, with a large majority of players having changed their lives for the better by giving up drugs and alcohol; taking on jobs, education and training; and reuniting with families. Some have even gone on to become professional or semi-professional players or coaches.

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Countries gather at UN Headquarters to discuss improving disability rights