World Sports Alliance - The Creation of The World Sports Alliance (WSA) As An IGO

The Creation of The World Sports Alliance (WSA) As An IGO

The founder and president of WSA-IGO is Mr. Alain Lemieux. On 8 July 2005, Dr. Alessandro Manini, the Secretary General of IIMSAM/CISRI-ISP appointed Alain Lemieux as an Ambassador and Vice Secretary General of CISRI-ISP/IIMSAM.

WSA-IGO was created following the adoption of the Rabat Declaration(2) in Morocco, in May 2007 by the Kingdom of Morocco, the Republic of Niger, and the Dominican Republic, and its subsequent presentation and registration with the Economic and Social Council UN-ECOSOC (E/2007/NGO/1)(3) in July 2007. By the end of 2008, WSA had grown to include 22 Member States and currently has 28 members with a combined population base of approximately 355 million.

WSA gathers as members those countries who share its vision and objectives and who wish to collaborate with one another to achieve the Alliance’s goals. Pursuant to the Accession process, the Sports and Youth Ministers of each Member state become the lead representative of their respective governments within WSA.

The decision to organize as an Intergovernmental Organization (IGO) was strategic. An IGO is an organization made up primarily of Sovereign States, referred to as its Member States, and requires the membership of a minimum of three (3) countries in order to qualify as an IGO. Examples of IGO’s include the United Nations, the European Union, CISRI-ISP/IIMSAM and NATO.

This organizational form permits WSA to work in direct concert with its Member States through the Sports and Youth Ministries of each Member State on the social and academic aspects of the WSA programs. At the same time, this structure also enables WSA to work in direct contact with the Heads of State, the Prime Ministers and Ministers of each of its Member States on matters pertaining to the Public Private Partnerships in order to encourage and reinforce the participation of Countries in their own sustainable and responsible development.

Further, by providing access to the highest levels of governments, the IGO status also provides WSA with the means to broaden support among non Member States for the strategy of using education through sports to engage the youth of a country in order to educate and then involve them in the development of their communities and society at large.