This has indeed begun to happen. Less than two weeks ago, adolescents presented to Azerbaijani officials their own recommendations on how to improve access to safe and inclusive sport in the country, following a Unicef-supported online consultation with 15,000 children and young people from different social and economic backgrounds – a consultation that was possible because of the space created by the games’ presence. Those adolescents were able to say, loudly and clearly, that while more than 90% of them considered sport and recreation important in their lives, more than half said that girls were left out of sports and two-thirds said that children with disabilities were being excluded. And they wanted something to be done about that.

These are the small steps that we need to nurture to help bring about larger positive changes in Azerbaijani society, and we firmly believe that these steps are valuable for children and young people.

Children in Azerbaijan, like children everywhere, have the right to have their voices heard and to influence issues that affect them. That’s something we at Unicef advocate in all countries where we work. We have been doing this in Azerbaijan before the games started, and will continue to do so once they are over.

NOTE: Marie-Pierre Poirier is Unicef regional director for central and eastern Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States.

 

(The Guardian)