SON to host national youth summit
• By Staff Reporter
THE Namibia Special Olympics will this weekend host the Special Olympics Namibia (SON) National Youth Leadership Summit, aimed at uniting youth leaders with and without intellectual disabilities.
The national youth leadership summit is scheduled for today (Friday) at Roof of Africa in Eros, Windhoek, while on Saturday (November 26) there will be national games and a family engagement workshop.
The national youth leadership summit will bring together athletes with intellectual disability interacting and competing against athletes without intellectual disability on one sports field at SON office in Katutura at the Youth Complex.
This was revealed by SON in a press release, which highlighted that the event would avail an opportunity for the general public to meet the country’s unified junior women team that won the unified cup this year in the United States of America (USA.
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“Youth leaders will receive training and tools to lead activities for social impact and inclusion in their schools and communities, while adult mentors will learn from their global peers on how best to engage with young people. Throughout this youth summit, young people will be empowered to become proactive in breaking down barriers to diversity, equity, and inclusion in their schools and local communities.
“We aim to produce a strong team that will proceed to train other young people to be innovators, leaders, and social change makers for inclusion. The legacy of the Summit will be felt regionally, as participants deploy their learning to implement practices for inclusion in their home towns. Young people, along with the support of their adult mentors, are igniting the engine of change in all parts of the world,” reads the press release.
On the national games, “This forms part of our unified sport program in preparation for Athletes to participate in 2023 Summer Game in Berlin, German from June 15-25.
At the same event our 2022 Unify Cup Gold medal winners will meet with the public in an open event and will take part in a celebratory match meant to celebrate their recent achievement after winning Sport Team of the Year Award.
“During the National event, we will also have a workshop for siblings and families and the youth who are all important connectors of the three groups central to our movement: athletes, families and youth. Through Special Olympics, the youth will find a supportive community, a platform to share their experiences, and an opportunity to develop as leaders,” the press release further stated.
NamPower and Disability Sport Namibia (DSN) will be part of the event as sponsors.