Event Report: Major Sporting Events – The Crossroads of Security and Socio – Economic Development Regional Conference for the Americas
Major Sporting Events – The Crossroads of Security and Socio-Economic Development Regional Conference for the Americas
The Organisation of American States (OAS) and the ICSS entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) in 2013. Since then they have been working together to initiate a regional program to enhance the positive impact of major sporting events and sports at-large in the Americas through collective and multisectoral collaboration. Bringing together the fields of security and development, the OAS and ICSS partnership seeks to raise awareness among OAS member states and international stakeholders on how different sectors can work together to prepare and secure major sporting events, protect their integrity and to maximize the socio-economic development opportunities they may generate for host cities and countries.
In this context, the OAS Secretariat for Multidimensional Security (SMS), through its Inter-American Committee Against Terrorism (CICTE) jointly worked with the ICSS to organise and implement the first regional conference for the Americas “Major Sporting Events: The Crossroads of Security and Socioeconomic Development”. The conference took place from June 25-26, 2015 in Washington, D.C., at the OAS Main Building. This served as the inaugural event between the two entities and brought together high-level government officials from Ministries of Sport, Tourism, Development, Security, and Human Rights as well as representatives from the Olympic movement, international and regional organisations, academic community, international development agencies, and private sector. Participants explored topics ranging from regional security policies to good governance and the protection of vulnerable groups within the context of major sporting events.