ICSSPE participates in UNESCO CIGEPS Session in Paris

ICSSPE Executive Director Patrick Stolpmann represented the organisation at the Ordinary Session of UNESCO’s Intergovernmental Committee for Physical Education and Sport (CIGEPS), held at UNESCO Headquarters in Paris on 15-16 June 2026.

 

ICSSPE attended the meeting in its role as a permanent consultative member of CIGEPS, alongside representatives of elected UNESCO Member States and members of the Permanent Consultative Committee. The session opened with an address by UNESCO Director-General Khaled El-Enany and included the election of H.E. Gohar Nabil, Egyptian Minister of Youth and Sport, as CIGEPS Chair for the remainder of the 2026–2027 mandate.

 

A central focus of the meeting was UNESCO’s ongoing development of the Global Policy Standards for Inclusive, Equitable and Safe Sport and Physical Education, which are expected to be presented for consideration by governments at the upcoming MINEPS VIII. The Standards aim to support governments in strengthening sport and physical education systems through more coherent policies, stronger accountability mechanisms and rights-based approaches.

 

Dedicated discussions focused on Safe Sport and Disability Inclusion. As part of the Safe Sport session, UNESCO, in partnership with the Sport & Rights Alliance, released the report Toward Safe Sport: Policy Recommendations from People Impacted by Violence, highlighting the importance of survivor-centred approaches, stronger prevention, reporting and support systems. Discussions on Disability Inclusion focused on translating international commitments into concrete and sustained policy action.

 

The session also included updates on the reform process of the International Convention against Doping in Sport, which aims to strengthen the Convention’s impact, sustainability, governance and effectiveness.

 

On 17 June, Patrick Stolpmann also met with Philipp Müller-Wirth, Chief of the Sport Section at UNESCO, to continue exchanges on shared priorities between ICSSPE and UNESCO. Key topics included the finalisation and dissemination of the Global Policy Standards highlighted during CIGEPS, joint work on the social return on investment in sport and disability inclusion, updates to the Fit for Life programme, a new Quality Physical Education survey, and preparations for the next MINEPS.

 

ICSSPE’s participation in CIGEPS reflects its continued commitment to international cooperation and policy dialogue in sport, physical education and physical activity, supporting efforts to build more inclusive, equitable and safe sport systems worldwide.