A FOOTBALL TOURNAMENT TO PROMOTE PEACEFUL CO-EXISTENCE BETWEEN COMMUNITIES IN EL-GENEINA
UNITAMS,Sudan
To support the mandate’s implementation of the United Nations Integrated Transition Assistance Mission in Sudan (UNITAMS) on peace building, the EU funds a joint UNITAMS-UNICEF program in West Darfur to promote peaceful coexistence and peace building. As part of a series of activities aimed at promoting dialogue and enhancing social cohesion, a football tournament in which eight football teams from El-Geneina city competed against each other was held last month.
The tournament aimed to support the reconciliation agreements reached in 2022, to re-build trust, to restore inter-community relations and, also, to strengthen the skills of youth-led civil society organizations working on peace building.
The teams that participated in the tournament were Um Duwain, Al-Jabal, Ardamata, Durti, IDP gathering site (A), IDP gathering site (B), North El Geneina and South El Geneina. In a thrilling final match, the Ardamat team won the championship against the team Durti by 3 /0.
The Governor of the West Darfur State, Khamis Abdallah Abaker, praised the efforts of UNITAMS and its partners to support peace building through sport activities in the state.
The UNITAMS Representative in West Darfur, Musse Id, encouraged the players and the public to spread the culture of peaceful coexistence between communities and to come together as a team to denounce hate speech and tribalism and resort to dialogue to resolve their differences.
According to the Director of the High Council for Youth and Sports, Kaouther Mohamed Khatir, the tournament achieved its goals of realizing peace, peaceful coexistence between communities, respect and acceptance of others, and tolerance. “Let me assure you that all those who participated in the activities will be ‘messengers of peace’ in this ‘beloved state’. Sports is a bridge that links together all components of the community, improves the social fabric and strengthens friendships and ties,” concluded Ms. Kaouther.