The Ministry of Sport and Community Development will host the Community Development Partnership Forum, Fifth Edition (CDPF-V) virtually, over the period January 24-26, 2022. CDPF-V will be a regional Forum targeting academics and practitioners from the English Speaking Caribbean, focused on the issue of Sport for Development.

The theme of CDPF-V will be "Sport as a Driver of Sustainable Community Development". The Forum therefore focuses on sport for development, which is defined as the use of sport as a vehicle to achieve personal, community, national and international development objectives. CDPF-V will place emphasis on the efficacy and execution of sport for development programmes in the context of specific vulnerabilities and targets. These targets are vulnerable communities, at risk children and youth, women and girls, men and boys, persons with disabilities and the elderly. CDPF-V aims therefore to create an opportunity for practitioners in the sport and community development sectors to:

1. Focal Areas/Populations of CDPF-V
CDPF V will seek to engage relevant local, regional and international professionals, and sport and development practitioners in a series of creative workshops and discussions that showcase successful innovations and strategies which utillise sport as a development tool. This is with a view to informing, inspiring and equipping local sport and community development practitioners to create specific interventions using sport for sustainable community development in the Trinidad and Tobago.
The pivot to the virtual hosting of such events, occasioned by the covid-19 pandemic, provides an ideal opportunity to engage regional Ministries with responsibility for Sport and for Community Development and their networks to also participate and benefit from this opportunity.

High Needs Communities
Collective efficacy is a sociological concept that defines the degree to which communities are cohesive and engage in their own social regulation. The presence of higher levels of collective efficacy is associated with superior community outcomes including lower levels of crime and violence; lower levels of social fragmentation; improved health outcomes among other important socio-economic experiences. Vulnerable communities, that is, communities displaying a high level of needs for infrastructural development, poorer quality housing and amenities and where households have high levels of social welfare dependence, unemployment or under-employment. Such communities may be good candidates for sport for development programming focused on building community cohesion, encouraging dialogue and civic participation as a means of growing collective efficacy and strengthening the capacity of the community to take control of their space for positive outcomes.
Accordingly, there will be need to identify appropriate local, regional or international examples and case studies where sport programming was used to improve community cohesiveness and engagement in social regulation of the community.

Vulnerable groups
Sport can be used as a vehicle for treating with social, economic and attitudinal changes in the lives of vulnerable groups. Vulnerable groups in the context of the National Social Mitigation Plan 2017-2022, include a wide range of persons such as the elderly, single parent households, persons with disabilities, women and children, and unemployed workers. This list can be expanded to reference youth at risk of falling through the cracks; persons suffering from or at risk of non-communicable diseases and lower income families.

Successful strategies of using participation in sports to improve the quality of life of various vulnerable groups will be the main feature of this initiative. Sports participation is thought to have many beneficial outcomes, such as improved physical health, social and mental well-being, pro-social behaviour, and academic achievement. Additionally, multiple studies have shown that sports programs offer people contexts in which they could develop different life skills, such as physical and social competency, communication and teamwork, leadership, problem-solving, and decision-making. Such skills will be valuable to help vulnerable groups to deal with life’s challenges and transform difficult situations.
Therefore CDPF V will seek to facilitate the sharing of examples of successful sport based outreach programmes targeting of this group of persons. Speakers who have transformed themselves out of vulnerable situations and are now prominent in the sporting world should be sought and utilised to be a beacon for this group especially within Trinidad and Tobago.

Children and Youth
Children and youth respectively, have enormous potential for benefit and growth using sport. It is no secret that in Trinidad and Tobago, many of the nation’s children exist in very debilitating situations. The reports to the Children’s Authority Hotlines outlines an alarming number of over 4000 reports of abuse annually, which have increased exponentially during the stay at home measures. A related report indicated that of the 4000 cases in 2019, 22.6% were for sexual abuse, 20.6% were for neglect and 14.3% for physical abuse. Recognising that reported cases are typically only a subset of actual cases, this suggests that too many home environments are not serving as places of safety for the nation’s children. International research also indicates that the issue of a lack of familial attachment is a key marker for juvenile delinquency, adverse social-social patterns, violence and attraction to criminal lifestyles.
Sport programmes targeting children and youth can potentially expose children to escape activity, role models and mentors, structure and discipline and improved self-esteem that could change the trajectory of their lives. The CDPF V can provide an opportunity to identify successful sport interventions and best practices that could enhance the capacity of sport and community development practitioners to provide innovative sport programming to help the nation’s children and youth.

Women and girls
Sport has the power to change the lives of women and girls by teaching them teamwork, self-reliance, resilience and confidence. Sport is one of the great drivers of gender equality. Women in sport defy gender stereotypes and social norms, make inspiring role models, while reinforcing that men and women are equal.
However, as a developing nation, Trinidad and Tobago has inherited many of the hegemonic masculine traditions and false perceptions passed down throughout the history of sport. As a result, Government has led the way in encouraging and supporting the participation of women and girls’ in sport as well as their longterm development in and through sport. The ‘’Pink Reign Campaign” is one such initiative championed by the Government which allows communities to gain access to seminars, workshops and fun activities that are tailored for women and girls and which will aid in the reassurance factor to women and girls regarding their roles and importance in the world of sport.
The objective of the CDPF V is to foment more of this type of initiative led by both the Government and civil society, thereby expanding the opportunities for (i) the dismantling of gender stereotypes in sport; (ii) for women and girls to achieve excellence in sport; and (iii) for women and girls to engage with already successful women who will mentor and facilitate the holistic development of these women and girls using sport as the medium.

Men and Boys

Sport has historically been given a priority position in the lives of most men and boys. Sport has played a tremendous role in defining men’s conception of masculinity. It has the potential to influence and impact the minds and behaviour of our men and boys with respect to issues of violence, gender equity and emotional and physical wellbeing.

CDPF-V will seek to explore the issues faced by policymakers, sport and community practitioners on how to harness the positive and transformative aspects of sport in the lives of men and boys. The Forum will invite new discussion around the issues of male marginalisation, misplaced masculinity and gun culture versus sport culture as a catalyst for power.

We intend to continue the dialogue about moving forward with efforts that actively engage men and boys in challenging power dynamics in their own lives as well as in their communities. To frame the discussion in this ongoing topic of men and boys, CDPF-V will address issues in the context of Sport for Development, such as: linkages between gender, masculinity, and power; productive social and cultural norms about masculinity, gun culture and power; and the inclusion of men and boys in a shared vision of gender equality so as to transform prevalent notions of masculinity.

Persons with Disabilities
Persons with Disabilities refers to individuals who experience long-term physical, mental, intellectual or sensory impairments which in interaction with various barriers may hinder their full and effective participation in society on an equal basis with others. Data provided in the 2011 Census conducted by the Central Statistical Office revealed that approximately 52,244 persons are living with a disability in Trinidad and Tobago. Therefore, PWDs accounts for 4% of the total population size of 1,328,019. The number of cases of disabilities for females were slightly higher, 26,234 than males, 26,010.
Sport is used as a platform by persons with disabilities to express their abilities and talents. However, persons with disabilities face a number of challenges in sport these include; (i) limited local sport facilities that cater to the needs of persons with disabilities, (ii) limited and equal funding to athletes with disabilities and (iii) marginalisation of persons with disabilities in the space of sport. The National Sport Policy 2017-2027, outlines in its objectives the aim to upgrade and implement provisions for the aged and differently-abled individuals at all sports facilities.
As such, CDPF V will seek to explore and address how sport can be used as a tool for the empowerment of persons with disabilities, and provide a learning opportunity for development and sport practitioners to treat with this group in a manner that would result in improved integration and inclusion in society.

 
Elderly
Trinidad and Tobago has an aging population. Over the past years there has been an increase in what is called sportification. The notion of sportification refers to a growing number of people that have become involved in sporting activities over the past decades and to the related diversification of those activities and settings. The group that has most adapted to this notion seems to be that of elderly persons.
Elderly persons are now a key are part of this sportification process as there has been a growing number of those who are members of sports club or participate in a commercial sport setting. Thus, information regarding the health and wellness benefits should be circulated to those who have not yet joined the movement of sportification as well as those who are already there. This will aid in the understanding of what sports and physical activity offers the elderly on both a direct and indirect level.
Programs that outline the various direct and indirect health and wellness benefits could be the focus of engagement for elders, as well as opportunities for productive aging.

2. Target Audience of CDPF-V
CDPF-V will seek to provide education and exposure to successful and innovative sport development initiatives and interventions consistent with the focal areas outlined.
This opportunity is being provided to entities and individuals from a wide range of sectors presented below. Digital technology allows this iteration of the Forum to seamlessly welcome all of the English Speaking Caribbean.

 
The Forum targets:

• sport and community development practitioners operating within the public and private sectors 
• Sport Servicing Bodies and National Governing for Sport
• Sport Groups in communities
• Community based, non-governmental and other organisations that provide social or sporting activities.

In terms of speakers and presenters, CDPF V will target local, regional and international experts and practitioners who would have excelled in sport for development initiatives and who could speak experientially about innovations, success stories, best practice and data driven interventions in the area.