SDP IWG (2008), Harnessing the Power of Sport for Development and Peace: Recommendations to Governments

This groundbreaking report is the result of the SDP IWG’s initial four-year mandate (2004-2008) and presents evidence of the effectiveness of Sport for Development and Peace. The report demonstrates that well-designed programmes that prioritize the best values of sport can drive development goals forward. It presents:

• Consolidated up-to-date evidence of sport’s effectiveness as a development agent in key thematic areas health and disease prevention, child and youth development, gender empowerment, inclusion of persons with disabilities, and peace-building;
• Specific policy recommendations for government sectors working in these areas; and
• Practical and cross-cutting policy recommendations to all ministries within national governments on how to integrate sport as a tool for development and peace into national and international development policies and programmes.

The report is also available in French and Spanish:

• Groupe de travail international sur le sport au service du développement et de la paix (2008), Canaliser l'énergie du sport au service du développement et de la paix: recommandations aux gouvernements .
• Grupo internacional de trabajo sobre el deporte para el desarrollo y la paz (2008), Aprovechamiento del poder del deporte para el desarrolo y la paz: Recomendaciones a los gobiernos.

SDP IWG (2008), Summary of Harnessing the Power of Sport for Development and Peace: Recommendations to Governments

This summary presents key findings and recommendations from the final report Harnessing the Power of Sport for Development and Peace: Recommendations to Governments.

The summary is also available in French and Spanish.

SDP IWG (2008), Sport for Development and Peace: Governments in Action

This companion document to the report “Harnessing the Power of Sport for Development and Peace: Recommendations to Governments” profiles the Sport for Development and Peace activities of 34 countries from around the world.

Please click to download:

Governments in Action Table of Contents, Foreword, Introduction and Summary (3.3MB)

Governments in Action Part II - National Overviews A-C (5.8MB)

Governments in Action Part III - National Overviews E-P (6.1MB)

Governments in Action Part IV - National Overviews S-Z (6.5MB)

SDP IWG (2008), From the Field: Sport for Development and Peace in Action

“From the Field” is a collection of dynamic projects and programmes that are using sport to achieve diverse development objectives, highlighting five key themes:

The projects and programmes presented have been compiled through personal interviews with Sport for Development and Peace Practitioners in the field and the initiatives featured from the local, regional and national levels come from the diverse regions of Africa, Europe, Asia, South American and the Carribean.

SDP IWG (2008), From Practice to Policy

Tasked with preparing an initial overview of the status of Sport for Development and Peace, the SDP IWG Bureau and Secretariat produced, "From Practice to Policy", a report investigating current practice at the national government level and to inform the development of a series of policy recommendations for presentation at the Beijing Olympics in 2008.

This report discusses the concept of Sport for Development and Peace. It identifies the particular benefits that sport offers in the development context and looks at the strong growing support for Sport for Development and Peace internationally. The report also reviews key findings from an examination of thirteen national governments and their approaches to Sport for Development and Peace. Further, it synthesizes key themes which emerge from this study. The report concludes with suggestions of future directions the SDP IWG may choose to pursue and practical measures that can be taken; to increase the awareness of national governments and support their efforts to harness the tremendous power of sport for the benefit of their citizens and, in the case of donor countries, those of their development partners around the world.

University of Toronto (2007), Literature Reviews on Sport for Development and Peace

Sport and physical activity are rapidly gaining recognition as simple, low-cost, and effective means of achieving development goals. Over the past decade, UN agencies, international sport federations, international and national non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and national governments have been using sport as a tool for development and peace. As part of the SDP IWG mandate and recognizing the ever-growing need for evidence around the effectiveness of sport for development, in 2006 the Secretariat to the SDP IWG commissioned a research team from the University of Toronto, coordinated by Dr. Bruce Kidd, Dean, Faculty of Physical Education and Health, to conduct literature reviews looking into the use of sport to:

The literature reviews looked into the research published in peer reviewed journals, as well as other literature. The final reviews were edited by Dr. Kidd and Professor Peter Donnelly, Director, Centre for Sport Policy Studies.