16 Oct 2016

African Union  commissioner for social affairs, Dr Mustapha Kaloko says sport can help increase self-esteem by giving girls and women opportunities to learn new skills.
Speaking during a two-day Africa Women in Sport   Conference hosted by International Working Group (IWG), he said sport could also help girls and women to engage in positive relationships, acquire achievements, engage in volunteer service and receive public recognition.
“By providing women and girls with a voice in program design and decision-making, training, and opportunities for leadership and advocacy, sport programs can also empower and help equip them to take greater control over their own lives,” he said.
Dr Kaloko said closing gender inequalities in sport was therefore key if all were to win in development and more importantly in the growth of Africa’s economy.
He added that Agenda 2063 states that a determination to “eradicate poverty in one generation and build shared prosperity through social and economic transformation of the continent, aspiring that by 2063, Africa shall be a prosperous continent, with the means and resources to drive its own development.”
Therefore, he said sport had the ability to contribute towards the vision, adding that Africa need more role models such as Botswana's Amantle Montsho, South Africa's Caster Semenya, Kenya's Tegla Leroupe who had contributed immensely, not only to women's sport, but had elevated themselves through sport.
“ I can confidently say that at the African Union we are making strides towards achieving this,” he said.
He said AU had several measure in place such as supporting women’s sport commissions in each AUSC regions, a clear indication of the priority they  had placed in developing women's sport in Africa.
He said a lot still needed to be done and  when organisations like IWG approached them  for partnerships, they  welcome them.
He noted that AU was actively engaged with IWG on strengthening structures responsible for advancing women’s participation in sport in Africa.
“Particularly, I know that the IWG has worked closely with the AUSC Region V office hosted in Botswana, in addition to roundtable discussions with principles representing the office in Addis,” he said.
 African Union commissioner for social affairs also said there was a need to implore a gender mainstreaming approach to strategies in sport.He said there was a need to ensure facilities were more accessible for women, were safe and secure.
He added that there was also a need to ensure that there was increased women's representation in decision-making processes.
In addition, he advocated for more resources to be put into research in women and sport and provision of more access to training for women and girls in sport.
The two-day Africa Women in Sport Conference was hosted   under the theme, Reshaping Africa Women and Sport.
 It was attended by delegates from Europe and it paves way for the 7th World Conference on Women and Sport, which would be held in Botswana on May, 2018.