Peace and Sport, the politically-neutral organization aimed at promoting sport as a tool for peace, called for large mobilization to develop peace through sport policies during the Sixth International Conference of Ministers and Senior Officials Responsible for Physical Education and Sport (MINEPS VI) in Kazan, Russian Federation.

During the Conference, Peace and Sport ‘Champion for Peace’, Ms. Aya Medany, Egyptian modern pentathlon champion and member of the IOC Athletes Commission, addressed an audience of high level diplomats and Ministers of Physical Education and Sport, putting forward concrete ideas on how to get more girls to take up sport.

Aya Medany said: “More than ever, we need to pool efforts and remove the barriers that hinder collaboration between governments, policy makers and national Olympic committees and national sport federations in order to effectively use sport as a tool for social change.”

In an effort to raise awareness about sport’s potential as a development tool, Peace and Sport attended the policy area II conference of MINEPS VI entitled “Maximizing the contributions of sport to sustainable development and peace”, and displayed a poster within the official Poster Exhibition. Peace and Sport’s poster promoted the International Day of Sport for Development and Peace (IDSDP) and encouraged member States to get involved in the April 6 campaign by taking action to raise public awareness.

During the three-day conference, Peace and Sport organized several bilateral meetings with national governments. Laura Flessel, the French Minister of Sports, who is also a ‘Champion for Peace’, discussed integrating sport for development and peace in domestic and international development programs.

MINEPS is the only global platform of its kind, engaging governments, intergovernmental organizations, the sport movement, academia and specialized NGOs. The outcomes and recommendations of MINEPS are continuously strengthening the educational, cultural and social dimensions of physical education and sport while guiding the implementation of effective policies and practices around the world.