National coalition on sport for protection: A policy framework

This policy brief should be read alongside the policy brief Sport for Protection through Education: Conflicting Policy Frameworks, which identified policy gaps in institutionalizing Sport for Protection through educational activities in Jordan. It advocated for Jordanian stakeholders to invest in Sport for Protection programmes within formal and non-formal education activities.

Responding to this need, this policy brief outlines implementation mechanisms to establish a National Coalition on Sport for Protection. The Coalition would align the national protection framework with Jordan’s commitments to international sport guidelines, institutionalizing Sport for Protection in the country.

Two concepts are essential in this context:

Sport for Protection: Uses sport as a tool to support and protect vulnerable populations, particularly in humanitarian contexts like refugee camps or conflict-affected areas. It provides psychological, social, and physical protection to those at risk of violence, exploitation, or marginalization.
Safeguarding in Sport: Focuses on ensuring the safety and well-being of all participants within sports environments by implementing policies and practices to prevent and respond to abuse, harassment, and other harm, making sports a safe space for all.

The mechanisms for the Coalition were developed through discussions at a Policy Analysis Meeting organized by GFP on June 27, 2024, with eight stakeholders from the fields of sport, protection, and education. Further discussions took place during interviews with UNHCR and the Ministry of Education on August 6 and 14, 2024.

This policy brief is part of the Riadati/رياضتي Programme, funded by the Olympic Refuge Foundation and implemented by Generations For Peace since 2022. The programme aims to improve the psychosocial well-being of 15,000 vulnerable refugee and Jordanian children through sports activities delivered at UNICEF’s Makani Centres and summer camps in public schools. The analysis in the policy briefs builds on identified policy design needs in programme activities.