Rodion Plitukhin informed his colleagues about the systematic work of ROC to strengthen sporting relations on the basis of the Association of National Olympic Committees of Africa (ANOCA) and in the framework of strengthening direct contacts with the NOCs of the continent.
The next opportunity to discuss the various aspects of cooperation between Russia and Africa will be at the international parliamentary conference “Russia-Africa” on 19-20 March in Moscow.
The Secretary General of the ROC also spoke about the preparations for the Summit and the Russia-Africa Economic Forum, which will take place in Saint-Petersburg in July this year. It is planned to invite representatives of the ANOCA administration and national Olympic committees, especially from Algeria, Egypt, Senegal, Sudan, Mali, Eswatini and South Africa to participate in the events.
Colleagues from Namibia responded positively to the opportunity to attend the Russia-Africa Summit and Economic Forum to sign the cooperation agreement between the National Olympic Committees of the two countries.
The President of the Namibian National Olympic Committee thanked the ROC for its commitment to the Olympic ideals and its efforts to preserve the integrity of the Olympic Movement, despite (Western) attempts to increasingly politicise sport. Mr. Abner Shoagub pointed out that any discrimination against athletes (including on the basis of nationality) is unacceptable and expressed the hope that Russian and Belarusian athletes will once again be full participants in international competitions in the near future.
In turn, Ms. Joan Smith, as a member of the Commission for Culture and Education of the Association of National Olympic Committees (ANOC), praised the work of ROC President Stanislav Pozdnyakov as Chair of the Commission and reminded once again the importance of compliance with the Olympic Charter by all participants in the Olympic Movement.
At the end of the meeting, Rodion Plitukhin thanked the Namibian NOC for its willingness to cooperate and expressed confidence in the further development of fruitful bilateral relations.
