Annex 3
28TH SOUTH FORUM
Rarotonga, Cook Islands
17 - l9 September 1997
FORUM STATEMENT AND RESOLUTION ON SPORT AND DEVELOPMENT

We, the Leaders who have participated in the TwentY-Eighth Meeting of the South Pactfic Forum held in Rarotonga, Cook Islands, in 1997, recognise the importance of sport in the overall development of our nations. We value the benefits that lifelong sporting participation can bring, particularly to health, community cohesion and social interaction. We equally value the benefits of competitive sport, especially its role in developing national pride and providing role models for the young.

Recalling our Vision Statement issued at the Twenty-Sixth Meeting of the South Pacific Forum held in Madang Papua New Guinea, in 1995, for enhancing regional cooperation for the next twenty-five years in which indigenous and other values, traditions and customs of the region are respected and promoted through sporting exchanges, we see sport as one of the unifying forces for Forum countries and our region, encouraging friendly competition through the South Pacific Games and, for those States which are eligible, the Oceania Games, the Commonwealth Games and the Olympic and Paralympic Games.

We recognise the enormous regional opportunity presented by the Sydney 2000 Olympics and Paralympics to showcase the region through our athletes. We appreciate the generous assistance being provided by the Australian Government under the Australia South Pacific 2000 program to maximise regional participation in the Sydney Olympics and Paralympics, including through the regional Olympic Torch relay and to develop the physical education and sports administration of the region so that the Games are a springboard to the future development of sport in the region. In this context, we recognise the importance of a successful regional bid for the 2006 Commonwealth Games, which would give those eligible Forum members a further opportunity for their athletes to compete and strive for sporting international success within their own regional environment

Accordingly, we as Forum leaders resolve to support the development of sport in the region, within our available resources, by:

• developing strong, vibrant commitment to physical and sports education with our school systems;
• working closely wth our National Olympic Committees and other relevant bodies, both governmental and non-governmental, to encourage broad participation in sports; the development of skills in sports administration. coaching and officiating; and the promoion of arrangements for recreational and competitive sport at all levels and for all ages;
• encouraging regional sporting competitions and the sharing of information and expertise;
• supporting the Olympic Torch Relay through every National Olympic Commirtee (NOC) within Oceania and to work with each NOC, the Occarna National Olympic Committee and the Sydney Organising Committee for the Olympic Games in making this a truly unique reality for our region; and
• advocating and promoting a greater global emphases on sport in the region through the 2000 Olympics and Paralympics, the 2006 Commonwealth Games and various sports competitions, and by urging appropriate internaional fora, including the Cornmonwealth to give greater attention to the global benefits of sport in the context of development.