International Convention against Doping in Sport

• India participated in the 10th Session of the Conference of Parties (COP10) to the International Convention against Doping in Sport, held from October 20 to 22 at UNESCO Headquarters in Paris. 

• The meeting marked the 20th anniversary of the Convention, which is the only legally binding international instrument committed to promoting integrity and eliminating doping in sport globally.

• It highlights two decades of progress in global efforts to safeguard sport values, ethics and integrity. 

International Convention against Doping in Sport

• UNESCO’s International Convention against Doping in Sport is a multilateral treaty by which States agree to adopt national and international measures to prevent and eliminate doping in sport. 

• The Convention was adopted during the 33rd session of UNESCO’s General Conference on  October 19, 2005 and entered into force on February 1, 2007. 

• Since its initial ratification by 30 countries, the Convention now counts with 192 States Parties. 

• The Convention aims to harmonise anti-doping legislation, guidelines, regulations, and rules internationally in order to provide a level and safe playing environment for all athletes.

• The Conference of Parties (COP) is the sovereign body of the Convention, meeting in ordinary session biennially.

• The COP Bureau is elected at each session of the COP and coordinates the work of the Convention in-between sessions of the Conference, in close cooperation with the Secretariat. 

• In addition to States Parties and other Member States of UNESCO, the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) is invited as an advisory organisation to the Conference.

Mission of the Convention

The Anti-Doping Convention provides States Parties with the legal framework to:

a) Encourage international cooperation to protect athletes and the ethics of sport.

b) Limit the availability of prohibited substances and methods to combat trafficking.

c) Facilitate doping controls and support national testing programmes.

d) Encourage producers and distributors of nutritional supplements to establish ‘best practices’ in the labelling, marketing, and distribution of products which might contain prohibited substances.

e) Support the implementation of anti-doping education programmes.

f) Promote anti-doping research.

• The Convention works under a positive implementation approach, providing guidance, financial support, skill-training and capacity-building to empower States Parties aiming to enhance their implementation of the Convention. 

• It also provides a global forum for public and private stakeholders of the sport integrity ecosystem.

Highlights of COP10

• More than 500 representatives of national governments, anti-doping organisations, and permanent delegations to UNESCO attended the meeting.

• The Indian delegation, comprising Secretary (Sports) Hari Ranjan Rao and Anant Kumar, Director General of the National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA), engaged with delegates from over 190 States Parties.

• During the proceedings, India was re-elected as the Vice-Chairperson of the Bureau for the Asia-Pacific (Group IV) for the term 2025-2027. 

• Azerbaijan was elected Chairperson of the COP10 Bureau. 

• Brazil, Zambia, and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia were also elected as Vice-Chairs for their respective regional groups.

Additional Read:

What is the role of WADA & NADA?

The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) was established in 1999 as an international independent agency composed and funded equally by the sport movement and governments of the world. The organisation’s headquarters is in Montreal, Canada.

(The author is a trainer for Civil Services aspirants.)