Lausanne, Oct 17 (IANS) The International Olympic Committee (IOC) on Friday announced that it will transition its stakeholder engagement model from a commission-based approach to a working group approach.
Over the past 15 months, several working groups have already been established to address key “Fit for the Future” topics, demonstrating the value of the approach. As part of the review, the IOC paused its non-institutional commissions in February while assessing future engagement models.
Following that assessment, the IOC has decided to discontinue 12 commissions: Athletes’ Entourage; Culture and Olympic Heritage; Digital Engagement and Marketing Communications; Gender Equality, Diversity and Inclusion; the IOC Advisory Committee on Human Rights; Olympic Education; Olympic Programme; Olympism365; Public Affairs and Corporate Communications; Revenues and Commercial Partnerships; Sustainability and Legacy; and Technology and Technical Innovation, reports Xinhua.
The change stems from the ongoing “Fit for the Future” reform process and follows more than a year of consultation and review, including discussions with commission members, the IOC said. The organisation concluded that working groups with clearly defined mandates offer a more effective and flexible mechanism for shaping policy and supporting decision-making.
The IOC says the shift will enable more targeted engagement on key strategic priorities and policy development across the Olympic Movement.
A number of institutional bodies will continue their work unchanged. These include the Athletes’ Commission, the Audit Committee, the Coordination Commissions for the Olympic Games and Youth Olympic Games, the Ethics Commission, the Finance Commission, the Future Host Commissions for both the Summer and Winter Games, the Health, Medicine and Science Commission, the Human Resources Committee, the IOC Members Election Commission, the IOC Television and Marketing Services Board of Directors, the Legal Affairs Commission, the Olympic Broadcasting Services Board of Directors, the Olympic Channel Services Board of Directors, the Olympic Refuge Foundation Board and the Olympic Solidarity Commission.
The IOC said the transition “is designed to provide greater flexibility in engaging subject-matter expertise while strengthening its ability to address specific opportunities and challenges through focused, purpose-driven collaboration.”
–IANS
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