The General Authority of Sports (GAS) revealed details of the first edition of the ‘Emirates Community Sports Forum’, which is scheduled to be held from November 22 to 24, 2023, under the patronage and participation of His Excellency Dr. Ahmad Belhoul Al Falasi, Minister of Education and Chairman of GAS. The Forum, organised by the Authority in cooperation with the UAE Sports for All Federation, will focus on the theme ‘Sports and Quality of Life’.
H.E. Jasem Mohamed Al Budaiwi, Secretary General of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), along with representatives of various sports agencies and strategic partners from the National Olympic Committee, sports council, heads of sports federations participating delegations from the GCC countries, as well as selected officials, experts and researchers in the field of community sports, will be attending the conference.
Furthermore, the Forum focuses on reviewing and addressing pressing issues in the sports community, both locally and regionally. The forum will shed light on various themes such as cooperation, innovation, capacity building, artificial intelligence (AI) and applied research on encouraging sports culture across the society.
H.E Saeed Abdul Ghaffar Hussein, Director General of GAS said: “The Emirates Community Sports Forum will be an active platform for encouraging community sport, acquainting local community groups with various sports, and motivating people to participate. In line with the goals and objectives of our wise leadership, community sports are one of the priorities due to its role in promoting opportunities for sustainable development and community health. We are creating plans, programs and initiatives through this significant event that will establish a sustainable community sports sector.”
“The Forum is anticipated to contribute towards realising the national objectives within the National Sports Strategy 2031, where development of community sports is a key part of the strategy, with an ambitious target of 71 percent of the UAE’s population sports. The forum offers a significant opportunity to reinforce cooperation frameworks with GCC partners to attain common strategic objectives of encouraging a sports culture across various communities,” he added.
During the press conference, Ahmed Al Abdouli, Director of Community Sports Management at GAS, evaluated the three-day program schedule. On the first day, the forum will congregate delegates to review best regional practices, particularly from Saudi Arabia, Oman and Bahrain. On the second day, interactive sessions will be held to highlight the opportunities and challenges involved in the implementation of various sports programs and practices across Arab communities. The session will also highlight the impact of technology and its role in bolstering sporting culture in society.
Two interactive sessions being held are titled ‘Prospects for Community Sports’ and ‘Strategic modelling to promote community sports’ respectively. The first session will be moderated by Mishal Al-Qahtani, with the participation of Dr. Mariam Khalifa Arab from Kuwait, Dr. Faisal Al-Mulla from Bahrain, and H.E Shaima Saleh Al-Husseini from KSA. Meanwhile, the second session will be moderated by Osama al-Amiri, with the participation of Dr. Abdul Rahim bin Muslim Al-Durushi from Oman, Dr. Sunaid Salem Al Marri from Qatar, and Dr. Osama El-lala.
Also, on the second day, associated sports exhibition will be open for the exhibition of recent technologies and methods that can ensure the sustainability of community sports. On the third day, the delegations will visit the exhibition. At the end of the forum, all participating delegations will gather to discuss final recommendations and the forum’s highlights.
The main objective of the UAE Community Sports Forum is to encourage community sports across the GCC region in line with global best practices and benchmarks, further reinforcing the UAE’s position as a global hub for sports science. It also strives to strengthen research collaboration and capacity-building in community sports at all local, regional and worldwide levels. Additionally, it seeks to establish partnerships between the different Gulf and international communities and facilitate the sharing of experiences by discussing development systems for all sports.