Sport and Peace was the third Thematic Working Group of the Sport for Development and Peace International Working Group (SDP IWG) to be activated. The Sport and Peace Thematic Working Group is currently jointly co-chaired by Russia and South Africa.

The Thematic Working Group focuses on three strategic priority areas outlined in the draft Action Plan:

• Sport to Promote Social Inclusion and Diversity
• Sport in Conflict and Post-Conflict Situations
• Promote a Culture of Peace through Sport

These three strategic priority areas and the associated recommendations may be challenging for some governments to pursue due to a scarcity of resources and also due to the jurisdictional division of responsibility with provincial/state, local governments for education and other matters. It is assumed that governments will seek partnerships wherever possible to leverage the resources necessary to advance the objectives cited below. It is also assumed that, where governments do not have direct jurisdiction, they may use their convening power, shared-cost partnerships and other forms of influence to promote positive action by other levels of government.

Objectives

Working together with Members (Member State representatives) and Observers (experts, NGOs etc), the Sport and Peace Thematic Working Group aims to meet the following objectives:

1. Utilize available resources to identify issues and best practice approaches within the Sport and Peace Working Group thematic;
2. Provide a forum for governments to benefit from each other’s experience and share best practices with regard to sport and peace;
3. Support the implementation of the recommendations with regard to sport and peace which include the following strategic areas of priority: Using Sport to Promote Social Inclusion; Using Sport in Periods of Conflict; Using Sport to Build Peace in Post-Conflict Solutions.
4. Sustain momentum with regards to government awareness and take-up in sport and peace policy and programmes.