“Sports, like education, are a wonderful social elevator. Promoting sports helps to promote development, because it is imperative to find ways to break the vicious circle of poverty affecting the continent”.
With these words on 15 December, the Prime Minister of Tunisia, Mohammed Ghannouchi received a delegation from UNDP bearing a message from the UNDP Administrator, Mr. Mark Malloch Brown, on the occasion of the Africa Cup of Nations, which will be held in Tunisia from 24 January to 14 February 2004.
The Prime Minister expressed the support of President Zine El-Abiddine Ben Ali and the Tunisian Government for the Africa 2015 initiative, a communications strategy conducted by UNDP and all United Nations agencies to supplement and intensify the efforts of groups in civil society and governmental organizations to achieve the Millennium Development Goals in Africa.
Sports, especially football, because they have an extraordinary ability to mobilize the public, are a fundamental avenue for raising awareness of major challenges like HIV/AIDS, education and problems with the environment, and thus the Africa Cup of Nations presents an exceptional opportunity for advocacy.
According to Djibril Diallo, Director of Communications for UNDP and head of delegation, “We want to mobilize all the talents and energies on the continent, from the world of sports to music, to speed up the achievement of the MDGs by 2015.”
– It is unacceptable that, with all the knowledge and resources available in the world, over a billion people go to bed hungry, many children cannot attend school, many women continue to die in childbirth, and AIDS continues to undermine development
– Sports celebrities should help us to get across the message of solidarity both with decision-makers and intellectuals and with youth and street vendors. This is the future of our societies, and it concerns us all directly, said he.
Ms. Syndiely Wade, a member of the delegation as an honorary advisor to UNDP for mobilization of athletes and youth, “youth are truly fascinated by athletes. We must take advantage of this to encourage them to use their image in the service of development.”
In preparation for Tunis 2004, UNDP is already conducting a series of activities along with sports officials from the 16 countries that will participate in the competition, from the participation of football stars in promotional spots on HIV/AIDS, to press conferences on topics related to sports and development.
Tunisia is making remarkable efforts to achieve the Millennium Development Goals. Its poverty rate has gone from close to 22 per cent in 1975 to 4,2 per cent in 2002, from 1,2 million to 400,000 people in poverty.
School enrolment rates for children 6 to 12 years of age have risen from 88.1 per cent in 1990 to 92 per cent in 2000, and there are currently more girls than boys in secondary and higher levels of education.
UNDP is the global development network of the United Nations system. It advocates for change, and links countries to the knowledge, experience and resources their people need to improve their lives.
