Cairo – Egypt, Jan 24, 2013: Under the auspices of Egypt’s Ministry of Sports and in cooperation with the Egyptian Sports Writers Union (ESWU) and the Qatar Sports Press Committee (QSPC), the International Centre for Sport Security (ICSS) has announced that it will stage a unique event for the Africa and Middle East region, entitled the Sport Security Forum: Challenges & Solutions.
The two day forum, which will take place in Cairo, Egypt on 30th and 31st January, will include a range of workshops and lectures designed to explore various aspects of sport security within Egypt and the security and environmental challenges the country faces when hosting sporting events.
The inaugural event will bring together delegates from around Egyptian sport, including senior government officials, representatives from Egypt’s leading fan groups, high-level football administrators and recognized academics and journalists.
Key themes that will be explored at the event include: the role of private security at major sporting events, the role of the media, stadium design and technology.
A senior delegation including Mohammed Hajaj Al-Shahwani (ICSS Vice President), Mohammed Al-Malki (QSPC President) and Ridwan Al-Zayati (ESWU president) visited Cairo on 23rd January to discuss preparations for the event with Egypt’s Minister of State for Sports, Mr. Al-Amri Farouq.
Upon welcoming the visiting delegation, Mr. Al-Amri Farouq highlighted that the event would be an important step in bringing about the necessary change in security in football stadia around Egypt and would provide important insights for all stakeholders in Egyptian football, including fans, players and officials.
Thanking the Minister for the warm welcome the delegation received, Mohammed Hajaj Al-Shahwani, ICSS Vice President, said: “We are proud to be here in Egypt and to support Egyptian organizations to deliver a safe and secure security strategy for future sporting events hosted in the country.
“We have received a warm welcome from everyone here in Cairo. Egyptian sport has a strong heritage in Africa and around the wider region and we hope the forum will shed light on sport security and the current challenges facing Egyptian sport in general and football in particular. On behalf of the ICSS, we look forward to sharing our international network and expertise with clubs, fan groups, and officials at this important event.”
Mohammed Al-Malki, QSPC President, added; “This event is one of the fruits of the partnership between QSPC, ESWU and the ICSS and on behalf of the QSPC, I look forward to taking part in this inaugural conference and supporting our Egyptian colleagues to develop real solutions for the hosting of safe and secure major events around the country.”
Ridwan Al-Zayati, ESWU President, concluded; “This forum will hopefully become a cornerstone in developing critical solutions in sport security in Egypt and we would like to thank the ICSS for their involvement in staging this event. The time is right to discuss these issues with all stakeholders in Egyptian sport and I look forward to welcoming delegates from around the region for what I am sure will be a thought-leading event.”
As an international, not- for-profit organization based in Doha, Qatar, the ICSS regularly organizes international events and conferences to encourage the creation of sport security and integrity networks and to drive new thinking in this area. The forum will take place in Cairo from 9am on 30th January until 1pm on 31st January.
For accreditation requests, please send your name, publication and contact details to Michael Bukowiecki on
michael.bukowiecki@theicss.org or call +974 3383 8986. —- By Will shand/ICSS
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