Governance in sport-for-development: Problems and possibilities of (not) learning from international development

Lindsey, I.

Abstract

The lack of attention towards issues of governance in both global sport-for-development (SfD) policy and academic literature is placed in stark relief when compared to the significance accorded to such issues in international development. This article addresses this lacuna in sport-for-development by drawing on international development literature as well as interview data from representatives of international agencies, domestic governments and in-country non-governmental organisations involved with sport-for-development in Ghana and Tanzania. As previously recognised in other development sectors, the commonality of narrow, project-based approaches in sport-for-development contributes to excessive donor influence, fragmentation, competition and limits both impact and sustainability. It was in response to similar problems that, from the mid-1990s, Sector Wide Approaches were instigated within specific sectors in particular countries as a more systematic model of development governance based on leadership by the domestic government and co-ordination among donors and other stakeholders. Although interviewees’ perspectives and some exemplar sport-for-development initiatives aligned with key features of Sector Wide Approaches, significant challenges to their effective instigation in sport-for-development can be identified. Nevertheless, examining the applicability of Sector Wide Approaches to sport-for-development raises important issues that require further consideration and demonstrates the necessity that sport-for-development, more generally, learns from the longer-established field of international development.

Citation

Lindsey, I. (2017). Governance in sport-for-development: Problems and possibilities of (not) learning from international development. International Review for the Sociology of Sport, 52(7), 801-818. https://doi.org/10.1177/1012690215623460

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Dec 1, 2015
• Online Publication Date: Jan 6, 2016
• Publication Date: Nov 1, 2017
• Deposit Date: Dec 1, 2015
• Publicly Available Date: Dec 7, 2015
• Journal: International Review for the Sociology of Sport
• Print ISSN: 1012-6902
• Electronic ISSN: 1461-7218
• Publisher: SAGE Publications
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 52
• Issue: 7
• Pages: 801-818
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/1012690215623460
• Keywords: Global South, Partnership, Project-based aid, Sector-wide approaches, Sustainable development.
• Public URL: https://durham-repository.worktribe.com/output/1425630