Episode #67
(Season 4;
Ep.2):
Africa &
Sport (1):
Lessons for
African Unity?
We continue Season 4 STILL with a bang – by
jumping into the conversation on Sports. Since it debuted on 6 May, 2014, this
is actually the first time we are discussing Sport. This is ironic, considering
the capacity of Sports to foster African unity.
When we look at
football alone, the World Cup and AFCON together generate a sense of African’s
potential over the “Beautiful game” and, by extension, the potential “dominion”
they could hold in sectors non-sport.
At a recent
press conference at UN headquarters in February, the UN Secretary-General spoke
to the significance of “The Value of Hosting Mega Sport Events as a Social,
Economic and Environmental Sustainable Development Tool.”
In it, he reminded
the world about the importance of mega-sports events leaving “durable legacies
by developing equitable, inclusive and accessible facilities and infrastructure
that will benefit societies long after the games and competition are over.” The
message behind this was to emphasize how so-called mega sport events, like the
World Cup and the upcoming Olympics, have taken the sustainable and inclusive
developmental path by implementing “outstanding legacy initiatives at the
local, national, regional and global levels.”
As the world
heads down August to witness the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio, we want to ask
some important questions about the role of sports and its potential to help
unite Africa.
Over the past
decade, AFCONs have offered a sense of pride to West Africa as Cote d’Ivoire;
Togo; Ghana; -- to name but three – have dominated the games. Some may say the
magical aura of regional solidarity that surrounds games like these remind us
how united we are more as a region than we think.
It is arguable
that football reminds us how more-closely we identify with the regional space
than the continental. Even if this is the case, what lessons are there within
football, specifically, to help us learn about facilitating African unity?
Join us if
you can at 2.05pm on 23 March, 2016.
Call us on the following numbers
+233(0)289.000.931
Guiding
questions
- Does
football rally more African together than any other sport?
- How
do we use sport to foster African unity?
- What
other sports can Africa point to for lessons on solidarity?
Guests in the studio:
Ø Nana Agyeman , Media Consultant; Sports Analyst & UEFA-licensed coach
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*more details will be available soon on www.africainfocusradioshow.org ; africainfocusshow.blogspot.com.
*more details will be available soon on www.africainfocusradioshow.org ; africainfocusshow.blogspot.com.
Tweet
Emmanuel ahead of time on www.twitter.com/ekbensah,
using #africainfocus.
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