Resolution of the Council and of the Ministers for Youth meeting within the Council of 17 December 1999 on the non-formal education dimension of sporting activities in the European Community youth programmes
Date: 1999-12-17
Institutions: Council of the European Union, Representatives of the Governments of the Member States
Subjects: EU programme, non-formal education, sport, young person

12.1.2000

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 8/5

RESOLUTION OF THE COUNCIL AND OF THE MINISTERS FOR YOUTH MEETING WITHIN
THE COUNCIL

on the non-formal education dimension of sporting activities in the European Community youth
programmes

of 17 December 1999

(2000/C 8/03)

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION AND THE MINISTERS
FOR YOUTH MEETING WITHIN THE COUNCIL,

integration of young people,
and social
regards disadvantaged and disaffected young people;

in particular as

(4) ARE AWARE that sporting activities, with pedagogical aims
and objectives can provide a useful means of preventing
and combating chauvinistic and xenophobic attitudes and
behaviour which are priority aims in youth work, promote
dialogue between generations and help to overcome
various
risk behaviour and promote social
inclusion;

forms of

the European Communities to
INVITE the Commission of
devise,
in cooperation with the Member States, a coherent
approach with a view to exploiting the non-formal educational
potential of sporting activities in the context of European
cooperationg policy in the youth field. Such an approach
could:

(i) encourage cooperation between youth and sports bodies
with a view to promoting exchange of best practice in this
field and to providing room for youth sporting activities
which address the needs of young people in the area of
non-formal education while ensuring the equal access of all
young people;

(ii) capitalise on the potential inherent in sporting activities in
terms of the implementation of the youth, education and
training programmes and ensure that youth sporting
projects are fully in line with the pedagogical aims and
objectives, priorities and criteria of the programmes;

(iii) encourage the development of appropriate youth worker
training schemes addressed to those involved in sporting
activities so as to improve their knowledge and skills to
carry out youth projects at European level;

(iv) identify priority themes in work with young people which
can be promoted through sporting activities, such as
democracy, participation, tolerance, mutual understanding,
the dialogue between generations and sustainable social
and environmental development.

Having regard to Decision No 818/95/EC of
the European
Parliament and of the Council of 14 March 1995 adopting
the third phase of the (cid:145)Youth for Europe(cid:146) programme (1),

Having regard to Decision No 1686/98/EC of the European
Parliament and of the Council of 20 July 1998 establishing
(cid:145)European voluntary
the Community
service for young people(cid:146) (2),

action programme

Whereas:

(1) the Declaration on sport annexed to the Treaty of
Amsterdam emphasises the social significance of sport, in
particular its role in forging identity and bringing people
together;

(2) the European Parliament Resolution on the role of

the
European Union in the field of sports (3) calls on the
Commission,
sport
across the entire spectrum of its activities, especially in
the regional, social, educational, youth training and health
fields,

to take account of

in particular,

(1) NOTE that the European Community youth programmes
aim,
inter alia, at promoting young people’s integration
in this context
through non-formal education and that
sporting activities are a useful means and not an end,
and emphasises that young people’s sporting activities
may have a pedagogical value and also promote active
citizenship, participation, solidarity and tolerance;

everyday life

(2) RECOGNISE that sporting activities form part of young
people’s
traditional,
in that,
organised youth sports, there are growing youth sporting
activities stemming from young people’s own needs, which
are an integral part of the rich variety of youth cultures;

alongside

(3) CONSIDER that sporting activities with pedagogical aims
and objectives may contribute to the strengthening of the
civil society and play an important role in the socialisation

(1) OJ L 87, 20.4.1995.
(2) OJ L 214, 31.7.1998.
(3) OJ C 200, 30.6.1997, p. 252.