Fourth International Conference of Ministers and
Senior Officials Responsible for Physical Education and Sport
MINEPS IV
Athens, Greece, 6-8 December 2004 |
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Recommendations
Commission III
Woman and Sport
Introduction
- Affirming the importance and relevance
of previous achievements and work on promoting opportunities for women
in and through sport and physical education, Commission III recognizes
the need to build upon measures made under the auspices of UNESCO –
the UNESCO Charter on Sport and Physical Education 1978, the Declaration
of Punta del Este (MINEPS III) and the Athens Declaration 2003, –
as well as the Brighton Declaration 1994, the Windhoek Call for Action
1998 and the Montreal Communiqué of 2002; the IOC Declaration
and targets for at least 20% of women in decision-making positions in
NOCs and international federations by 2005;
- Welcoming the 2005 International
Year of Sport and Physical Education (IYSPE) proclaimed by the United
Nations, urges all Member States, when developing programmes
of activity for IYSPE, to take into account the needs of women and girls,
to ensure inclusion of all; and to consider the particular role of Olympic
education in promoting good values and interest in sport and physical
education;
- Emphasizing the role of sport and
physical education as tools for development, recognizes
their critical role in achieving the goals of Education for All and
the Millennium Development Goals;
- Recognizing and emphasizing the
crucial role of sport and physical education in the lives and development
of women and girls, especially for promoting health, self-esteem and
self-confidence, encouraging participation and achievement
in education, and promoting social cohesion and inclusion
in social and community life, the Commission made the following recommendations:
- Taking into account the significant
work that has already been done to improve the status of women and sport
and the desirability for all to share and celebrate these achievements
and resources, and
Acknowledging the generous offer of the Greek Ministry
of Sport to provide the financial and human resources to support the
development and maintenance of a web-based observatory on women, sport
and physical education, to be established under the aegis of UNESCO,
Commission III recommends:
- that a Steering Group comprised of officials from
the Greek Government, UNESCO and representatives of key international
bodies with a mandate in women and sport, meet with a view to preparing
a concrete project description for presentation to UNESCO by the end
of August 2005;
- that officials of the Greek Government chair the
Steering Group and assume responsibility for a plan and budget for
its work.
- Having heard with interest the
action of the Finnish Minister to set up a Working Group to develop
methods of assessing the impact of legislation, budgeting, distribution
of subsidies, etc., on gendered opportunities, recommends
that governments and NGOs recognize the use of the sport budget as an
instrument of gender equality. The Commission also recommends
the development of a common framework for countries to use self-assessment
to monitor progress and to promote the sharing of experiences and skills.
- Recognizing the need for clear evidence
and data to support strategies to increase investment in programmes
to promote opportunities for women and girls in sport and physical education,
recommends to Member States and to national and international
NGOs, that resources be found for programmes of research to outline
the situation in countries, to ensure more systematic collection of
data and to support advocacy in this area, which can be shared between
countries and regions of the world.
- Recognizing the importance of the
work and recommendations of Commission II on physical education and
sport in schools for the systematic development of the skills and confidence
for life-long participation in physical activity, especially for girls,
Commission III supports its recommendations that sufficient
time be found in the curriculum to deliver physical education to children
– all girls and boys, whatever their particular needs. This crucial
role should also be emphasized through UNESCO’s own Associated
Schools Network (ASP), so that the wider benefits of curricular physical
education can be demonstrated, especially for girls throughout their
lives.
- Stressing the particular barrier
facing women in countries without sufficient numbers of trained women
personnel, and where it is desirable or even essential that women and
girls are led by women, supports the recommendation
of Tunisia that UNESCO discuss with partner organizations such as the
International Council of Sport Science and Physical Education and the
International Olympic Committee, means of facilitating appropriate training
for women, especially in least developed countries (LDCs), for elementary
school physical education, coaching, officiating and administration.
- Acknowledging the world-wide challenges
of the growth of childhood obesity, especially among girls; high incidences
of early sexual activity and teenage pregnancy; and osteoporosis among
post-menopausal women, and the significant role of physical activity
and exercise in combating these, recommends to Member
States that intervention programmes should be developed to address these
challenges, with appropriate systems of monitoring outcomes.
- Appreciating the role of traditional
games, sports and dance in the development of opportunities for activity
for girls and women, and for continuity of culture and using sport as
a tool for development, Commission III recommends that
Member States with programmes of development in this area refer to TAFISA,
the international NGO whose role is to promote and share experience
of traditional games, sports and dance.
- Recognizing and celebrating the
contributions made by women to the promotion of opportunities for sport
and physical education for people with special needs, and for people
who are excluded from mainstream provision; and in view of men’s
relatively low participation in these areas, recommends
that Member States and NGOs consider ways of increasing the number of
men taking part in such work.
- Invites Member States to support
the recommendation of Japan to send at least one delegate to the Fourth
World Conference on Women and Sport, to be held in Kumamoto, Japan from
11 to 14 May 2006.

http://www.icsspe.org/portal/bulletin-january2005.htm
Fourth International Conference of Ministers and
Senior Officials Responsible for Physical Education and Sport MYNEPS IV recommendations 3
Athens, Greece, 6-8 December 2004
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