JUBA, March 12 (Xinhua) -- South Sudan has selected seven athletes to represent the east African country at the Special Olympics World Summer Games in Abu Dhabi, the country's Olympic governing body said on Tuesday.

The South Sudan National Olympic Committee (SSNOC) announced via a Facebook post that four girls and three boys will be taking part in the global sporting event set for March 14-21 in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

The SSNOC said in late 2018 that the country would participate in the Special Olympics Games in a bid to promote the rights of people with intellectual disabilities.

The Special Olympics World Summer Games are an international sporting competition for athletes with intellectual disabilities, organized by the IOC partner Special Olympics organization.

The world's youngest nation will be one of the 11 sub-Saharan African countries to make debutant appearance in the 2019 World Games.

According to the Special Olympics, the event will bring together more than 7,000 athletes from 170 countries and regions to compete in 24 sports such as athletics, badminton, basketball, swimming, table tennis, among others.