Zurich, November 27 (QNA) – FIFA has announced the launch of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 Legacy Fund that was declared in November 2022, with an investment of $50 million in a series of social programs in collaboration with Qatar and three global organizations, namely the World Health Organization (WHO), the World Trade Organization (WTO) and UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency.
The groundbreaking initiative was presented and signed during an online meeting attended by FIFA President Gianni Infantino, HE Secretary-General of the Supreme Committee for Delivery and Legacy (SC) Hassan Al Thawadi, WTO Director-General Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, and UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi.
The objective of this fund and the multi-stakeholder partnership help FIFA deliver results beyond the pitch and support international organizations drive positive social and developmental impacts across the globe.
FIFA is taking the concept of a legacy fund to the next level in terms of reach and impact by tackling key priorities such as refugees, occupational health, and education.
With respect to refugees, the Legacy Fund will support programs in partnership with UNHCR, to empower communities and promote resilience and self-sufficiency for some of the world’s most vulnerable people with a view to enhancing access to basic services, improving social inclusion and strengthening national systems.
As for Public Health and Occupational Health and Safety, the Legacy Fund will foster initiatives that will build on the role played by the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 for promotion of health and well-being and will extend to improving working conditions.
FIFA will join forces with WHO to support Beat the Heat, a flagship initiative to mount action to safeguard the health and safety of high-risk individuals from extreme heat and the related occupational and environmental hazards and impacts in the context of climate change.
Regarding football development, the Aspire Academy and the FIFA Talent Development Scheme will collaborate in identifying promising young talents in remote areas in a dedicated number of developing countries, with the objective of giving more talent around the world a chance to shine.
FIFA President Gianni Infantino affirmed that the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 Legacy Fund is a landmark project that builds on the unprecedented impact of the tournament from a sustainability point of view.
He added that FIFA is taking the concept of a legacy fund to the next level in terms of reach and impact by tackling key priorities such as refugees, occupational health, education, and football development, stating that he would like to thank the UN Refugee Agency, the World Health Organization and the World Trade Organization for their commitment and cooperation in this historic initiative.
For his part, UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi said sport can be a powerful channel of hope and empowerment for marginalized individuals and communities, emphasizing that this fund will take the World Cup legacy beyond stadiums and screens to millions, emp displaced by war, conflict and persecution.
He affirmed that it would enable life-saving assistance and long-term opportunities for uprooted people, helping them rebuild safely and in dignity.
WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the worlds of sport and health must collaborate to create safe, clean and healthy environments for all people engaged in the preparation, delivery and legacy of mega sport events, including workers, athletes, spectators, and communities.
He added that WHO looks forward to consistently partnering with FIFA and Qatar to continue building the health legacy of the World Cup.
WTO Director-General Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala emphasized that this initiative builds on important lines of collaboration already established between the WTO and FIFA, highlighting that through WTO’s Women Exporters in the Digital Economy Fund, this ground-breaking collaboration will help scale up capacity for women entrepreneurs seeking to use digital tools and platforms to access new opportunities and global value chains. (QNA)
