“Sport has the power to change the world. The power to unite people in a way that little else does…it breaks down barriers, it laughs in the face of discrimination. Sport speaks to people in a language they can understand.”
Sports organisations and activities are an important part of civil society and can be a powerful tool for engaging with target groups that other civil society organisations may not have the capacity to do, such as youth, girls and women, disabled individuals and the socially excluded.
In addition to this sport can provide an opportunity for mutual co-operation between aid agencies as well as being a catalyst for enhancing networks and partnerships across communities and regions and for assisting in building a global civil society.
This website highlights some of the work being done in the field of sport for development, and was produced in association with BBC Your Game and UK Sport.
Much of the content was produced by journalists and youth leaders involved in BBC World Service Trust training as part of the Next Step sport for development conference, including iLearn online media training.
If you want to contribute to this site, or wish to report technical problems, errors or irritating typos please email Nick Raistrick at iLearn@bbc.co.uk