IDSDP 2016 in Latin America

The International Day of Sport for Development and Peace is celebrated every 6 April. On the sportanddev.org “Who is doing what” page, we have featured projects from all over the world. Nevertheless, it is sometimes harder to find information about events and initiatives from non-English-speaking countries.

In particular, Latin America has a very active sport and development sector which does not always receive a lot of coverage in the rest of the world. While by no means a comprehensive list, here is a snapshot of some of the ways that Spanish-speaking countries celebrated IDSDP. 

Mexico
Although one journalist from Michoacán, Mexico, lamented that there is little to celebrate on IDSDP due to the declining state of sport in his region, Mexico was host to numerous inspiring initiatives. For example, the state or Morelos has made 6 April the official day of sport and physical education (Día Estatal del Deporte y la Cultura Física), while the State Commission on Human Rights in the state of Baja California (Comisión Estatal de los Derechos Humanos –CEDHBC) highlighted sport as one of the tools to promote tolerance, education, health, development and peace.

In Mexico City 2,500 students benefitting from Prepa Sí (a government programme designed to help youth stay in school) participated in a bike ride for peace. They then helped form a massive human bike as part of the city´s effort to promote the use of bikes as a healthy and sustainable means of transportation.

Chile
In Chile, everyone from school children to the president participated in IDSDP. In Placilla, Colchagua, the Ministry of Sport, in collaboration with the National Institute of Sport (IND), organised an event for more than 300 children.

The regional director of IND, Christian Droguett, noted that “We have made every effort to emphasise the importance of this day, which places great significance on teamwork, tolerance and fair play, values we want to pass on to these younger generations, demonstrating that sport has many positive sides that add to healthy living and fight a sedentary lifestyle”.

Meanwhile the president of the republic, Michelle Nachelet, together with the minister of sports, Natalia Riffo, put words into action as they did a walk around Santiago to promote physical activity.

Bolivia 
Sport has also become a central issue in Bolivia´s “Living Well” (Vivir Bien) campaign. In an interview with Bolivia TV, vice-minister of sport education, Marcelo Ortubé, said "In Bolivia, over the last 10 years, we have had more physical and sports activities in search of this paradigm of Living Well, and sport is a fundamental pillar to achieve that”.

To continue promoting sport in Bolivia, the ministry has signed several international cooperation agreements with China, Colombia, Japan, Canada, South Korea, Germany and Brazil among others.

The Dominican Republic
According to the  Dominican Republic´s minister of sports, Jaime David Fernández Mirabal, 6 April was celebrated throughout the country with the main event taking place in the Juan Pablo Duarte Olympic Centre. Activities included races, sports competitions and recreational events.