International Year of Sport and Physical Education 2005, Goals and Objectives

The overall goal of the International Year of Sport and Physical Education is to highlight the vital contribution sport and physical education can make in the achievement of global development goals. Through a series of conferences, events and the publication of research documents, the value of sport and physical education for education, health, development and peace is to be clear­ly demonstrated.

In line with United Nations General Assembly Resolution 58/5 and the United Nations Economic and Social Council resolution 1980/67 on international years and anniversaries, these goals will be achieved through the following tasks:

1. Promote sport and physical education for all when furthering their development programmes and policies, to advance health awareness, the spirit of achievement and cultural bridging to entrench collective values;
2. Ensure that sport and physical education are included as a tool to contribute towards achiev­ing the internationally agreed development goals, including the Millennium Development Goals and the broader aims of development and peace;
3. Promote a culture of peace, social and gender equality and advocate dialogue and harmony through collective work promoting sport and physical education-based opportunities for solidarity and cooperation;
4. Promote the recognition of the contribution of sport and physical education towards economic and social development and encourage the building and restoration of sports infrastructures;
5. Promote sport and physical education, on the basis of locally assessed needs, as a means for health, education, social and cultural development;
6. Strengthen cooperation and partnerships between all actors, including family, school, clubs/leagues, local communities, youth sports associations and decision makers as well as the public and private sectors, in order to ensure complementarities and to make sport and physical education available to everyone;

The IYSPE 2005 will also strive to reach the above-set targets through the dissemination of sci­entific evidence about the value of sport and physical education for development and peace in order to promote the role of sport for development and to mainstream sport in national and internation­al development policies.

In achieving its objectives, IYSPE 2005 will build on the experience of the European Year of Education through Sport 2004.