Sport can contribute significantly to efforts to give children a healthy start in life. Sport can help to equip children and youth with the information, skills, personal and social resources, and the support needed to make key life transitions successfully. Research has shown that positive, well-designed, age-appropriate sport and play experiences can help to:

• Enhance physical health and development;
• Foster psychosocial health and development;
• Build life skills and positive values;
• Help children and youth recover from trauma; and
• Strengthen education.

2. Heath Promotion and Disease Prevention

Sport generates health benefits in two ways — through direct participation in sport and through the use of sport as a platform for communication, education and social mobilisation. Research has shown that sport can help to:

• Prevent and manage non-communicable (chronic) diseases;
• Prevent and manage infectious diseases;
• Enhance mental health; and
• Reduce direct and indirect health costs.

3. Conflict Resolution and Peace Building

Sport alone cannot prevent conflict or build peace. However, it can contribute to broader, more comprehensive efforts. Sport helps to build relationships across social, economic and cultural divides and builds a sense of shared identity and fellowship among groups that might otherwise be inclined to view each other with distrust and hostility. While evaluative evidence on sport’s use to meet peace objectives is limited, there is significant anecdotal evidence that sport is being used successfully to:

• Promote social inclusion;
• Provide respite in periods of conflict;
• Build trust and establish bridges between groups in conflict;
• Build peace in post-conflict situations; and
• Promote a culture of peace.

4. Community Development and Participation

Sport can contribute significantly to increasing participation and enhancing community development because of its ability to bring people together. By fostering cross-generational exchange sport helps to build community spirit and citizenship that overtime will equip individuals and the community with the necessary skills and resources needed to face and resolve socio-economic challenges. Research shows that sport can help to:

• Bring communities together irrespective of background or culture
• Break barriers, forge alliances and foster cooperation
• Increase participation of groups normally excluded