Seeking Peacebuilding through Sports: Hosting a Conference to Share Knowledge in Jordan

On Feb. 12, 2020, a conference entitled "Sport for Refugees in Jordan: Programs, Challenges and Prospects" was held in Amman, the capital of Jordan, as part of the JICA Research Institute's research project "Peace through Sports."

Based on the perspective of peace and development through sports, this research project aims to clarify the actual state of the effects of development assistance through sports, which has not been sufficiently researched in the past, by focusing on social capital such as respect and trust between various stakeholders (athletes, spectators and government officials) related to JICA's sports support, as well as between different religions, ethnic groups, tribes, genders, and minorities. The research on South Sudan and Tanzania is being conducted by Professor Mitsuaki Furukawa of the University of Shizuoka, the lead researcher of the project, and that on Jordan by JICA Senior Research Fellow Zubaidullo Ubaidulloev.

Following opening remarks by Miyahara Chie, chief representative of JICA Jordan Office, Ubaidulloev, who served as the general host, gave an overview of the research project. Ubaidulloev also mentioned that JICA has actively contributed to sports-related peace-building through the activities of the Japan Overseas Cooperation Volunteers since the 1960s, and that JICA is working to promote physical education, to support refugees, disabled people and women, to train athletes, and to contribute to competitive sports under the "Sports for Tomorrow" program for the 2020 Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games.

In the following session, Furukawa moderated and representatives from UNHCR, UNICEF and the German Federal Enterprise for International Cooperation (GIZ) introduced their support activities and shared information on their main issues and achievements. In addition, four other sessions were held with discussion on themes including "Sport for Unity and Co-existence between Refugees and their Hosts," "Sport for Recovery of Refugees from the Trauma of War" and "Sport for Education and Individual Development of the Refugees."