NADA India today signed an MoU with SARADO, comprising of Anti-Doping Organizations of Bangladesh, Bhutan, Maldives, Nepal and Sri Lanka, at the NADA India – SARADO Cooperation Meet in New Delhi, in the presence of Shri Anurag Singh Thakur Minister of Youth Affairs & Sports and Information & Broadcasting, Government of India, Ms. Sujata Chaturvedi, Secretary (Sports), Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports, Government of India, SARADO Secretariat & Member Country Representatives of Bangladesh, Bhutan, Maldives, Nepal and Sri Lanka.

The MoU aims to increase the Regional Cooperation in anti doping in sport.

Speaking on the occasion Shri Anurag Singh Thakur highlighted India’s increasing participation and achievements in the international sporting arena and its  eagerness to shoulder responsibility in promoting clean sport efforts and contribute to global anti-doping movement.

Shri Anurag Thakur said “Shri Narendra Modi has envisioned India to become a sporting powerhouse in the coming years. The Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports is committed to transforming this dream into a reality and is working relentlessly to improve Indian athletes’ sports performance at the national and international level.”

He also added “Our increasing focus on high quality training, accessible and improved sporting infrastructure, increasing opportunities for all sports through competitions and training camps and mainstreaming efforts to promote gender equality in sports clearly reflect India’s intent and ambition to contribute to sports development globally”.

Shri Anurag Thakur also added that India is acting as a bridge to address the gap between the global north and global south and create opportunities for economic as well as social growth for our friends in the Asian region.

He further added that India’s increasing contributions to the World Anti Doping Agency and UNESCO International Convention Against Doping in Sport reflects India’s willingness and strong intent to be involved in furthering the anti-doping movement globally and continuously commit to strengthening anti-doping initiatives.

He also highlighted that as India currently holds the G20 Presidency, India is focusing on voicing the Asian region’s concerns and perspectives to the world. He underlined the importance of regional partnerships that will help the region evolve and emerge with an empowered approach to development of sports sector, amongst other areas of cooperation. He concluded by congratulating NADA India and SARADO for this first of its kind MoU for India in the anti-doping domain and invited members from the region to collaborate in other focus areas in sports development and take regional cooperation in the Asian region to new heights.

Union Minister urged the member countries of  SARADO to come together and work together to take up anti doping measures  in the field of sport on a war footing.

Ms. Ritu Sain, Director General & CEO, NADA India and Mr. Mohamed Mahid Shareef, Director General, SARADO signed the MoU on behalf of  their organizations. The MoU, through the project plan and areas of cooperation, aims to fulfill the following objectives over a period of three years:

1. developing an anti-doping education & prevention program in South Asia;
2. training & upskilling sample collection personnel, educators & other anti-doping education officers;
3. organizing courses, seminars, workshops, research & exchange tours on anti-doping education & prevention;
4. facilitating exchange of education officers, program managers, trainers, teachers and specialists on anti-doping education & prevention;
5. supporting anti-doping education activities and exchanging services of experts; and
6. producing anti-doping education literature

Ms. Sujata Chaturvedi, Secretary (Sports), Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports, Government of India, Mr. Kazuhiro Hayashi, Director, Asia/Oceania Office, WADA, Ms. Ritu Sain, Director General & CEO, NADA India and Mr. Mohamed Mahid Shareef, Director General, SARADO also addressed the gathering.

The inaugural session was followed by the 1^st Project Plan Meeting between members of NADA India and SARADO where the objective of developing an anti-doping education plan for South Asian region was discussed. The NADA India team presented an overview of the project plan, areas of cooperation, implementation strategy, mechanisms for monitoring outcomes and NADA India’s anti-doping education initiatives and resources. The Member Country Representatives of Bangladesh, Bhutan, Maldives, Nepal and Sri Lanka also presented an overview of anti-doping in their countries.

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NB/SK