President Ruto applauds IOC for including refugees in sports
President William Ruto says Kenya is working with
the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the United Nations High
Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) to support refugees to participate in sports.
The President pointed out that these efforts are
harnessing the athletic talent and potential of refugees at Kakuma, Turkana
County, and positioning the camp as a hub for Olympic talent.
He was speaking when he met the IOC bossThomas Bach
and UNHCR Commissioner Filippo Grandi, who had made a courtesy call at State
House Nairobi on Friday.
"We commit to work with your organisations in
the development of sports infrastructure and provision of education and
training programmes and facilities," he said.
The President explored potential partnerships
between the IOC and the Kenya Academy of Sports to further advance the
development of sports so that Kenya's sportsmen and women can fully reap the
benefits of their talent and reach their potential.
Consequently, the President pointed out that the
Sports Fund has been aligned with Kenya's development goals, including actively
working to combat doping and ensure fair and clean competition.
On his part, Bach pointed out that Kenya has
effectively established itself as a reputable sporting nation internationally,
with commendable sports administration nationally.
He commended the government for fully supporting
sports, adding that Kenya is one of the IOC members with a holistic sports
programme.
On refugees and the Olympics, Bach said: "Kakuma
is the cradle of the IOC refugee team and many refugee athletes have trained
there."
On the critical issue of doping that has plagued
athletics globally, the IOC head told President Ruto that he had held talks
with Kenyans sports officials and had agreed that any issues that arose would
be addressed comprehensively.
Grandi, the UNHCR Commissioner, commended Kenya for
the role it has played over the years in hosting refugees and helping them to
feel at home away from home.
He expressed the appreciation of UNHCR to the
Turkana and Garissa county governments for including refugee affairs in their
development plans.
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