Caribbean leaders ask for debt relief
Caribbean leaders struggling with high national debt burdens have asked the Commonwealth to strengthen its assistance as a top priority.
During his visit to the region, from 12 to 17 June, Commonwealth Secretary General Kamalesh Sharma met with heads of government, ministers and leaders of the opposition in Dominica, Jamaica, and St Vincent and the Grenadines. “The Commonwealth gave life to the Heavily Indebted Poor Country Initiative in the past; now we need to turn a new page that promotes relief for small, middle-income countries [MICs],” said Sharma.
One option explored during the Secretary General’s visit to the Caribbean was changing the international classification system that denies small MICs access to badly needed funds for certain programmes.
Women’s rights leaders meet in London
Nobel Laureate Amartya Sen appealed for women to be viewed as “agents of change” rather than “patient recipients of well-being”, at a symposium on 20 June exploring the political, economic and social barriers faced by women in both developing and developed countries.
The ‘Women as Agents of Change’ event was attended by around 150 politicians, economists, human rights advocates, academics and activists, and marked the Commonwealth Day theme for 2011 and the centenary year of International Women’s Day. The day-long meeting explored the role of women in the media, female political participation and inclusion, poverty and economic inequality, and violence and peacebuilding.
Caribbean women call for greater representation in parliament
The first ever Caribbean Regional Colloquium on ‘Women Leaders as Agents of Change’ was hosted by the government of Trinidad and Tobago, in collaboration with the Commonwealth Secretariat, UN Women, the Organization of American States, and the Caribbean Institute for Women, from 29 to 30 June. Women leaders from across the Caribbean recommended that the region’s governments should increase women’s representation in cabinet, parliament and local government to a minimum of 30 percent, to raise the number of women in political leadership acting as change agents.
Law ministers meet in Sydney
Attendees at the Commonwealth Law Ministers Meeting in Sydney, Australia, called for greater action to deal with climate change, forced marriages and cyber crime. The triennial meeting of law ministers and attorneys-general, which ran from 11 to 14 July, is the largest meeting of its kind within the international legal community.
During the conference, International Criminal Court (ICC) President Judge Sang-Hyun Song and Commonwealth Secretary-General Kamalesh Sharma signed a Memorandum of Understanding to strengthen and develop cooperation between their organisations to jointly support states implementing international criminal law.
Deputy Secretary-General Masire Mwamba visits Kiribati
Commonwealth Deputy Secretary-General Mmasekgoa Masire-Mwamba met with Kiribati President Anote Tong during her visit to the country from 19 to 21 July. Mrs Masire Mwamba and Mr Tong examined how Kiribati could benefit from the Commonwealth’s technical assistance programmes. They also discussed ways to mitigate the impact of climate change on the people of Kiribati – which has a minimal carbon footprint but is extremely vulnerable to the effects of global warming.
Putting sport for development on the map
On 22 July, the Commonwealth Secretariat’s Youth Affairs Division launched a project to map the use of sport for development and peace (SDP) initiatives across the Commonwealth. The exercise will help establish baseline data on SDP, which uses sport as a tool to help realise international development goals and to address some of the difficulties arising from humanitarian crises and in conflict and post-conflict situations. It will also help the Secretariat to plan its SDP strategies more effectively and aid regional youth centres in developing links with existing and potential partners.
EPG holds final meeting
The Commonwealth Eminent Persons Group (EPG) held its fifth and final meeting from 25 to 27 July in London. The group met to finalise its report to Commonwealth heads of government after receiving over 300 responses to its interim report, issued in May 2011. The Group said it gave careful consideration to each of the submissions and “was greatly impressed by the depth of commitment to the Commonwealth and the strength of interest in the association continuing to be vibrant and significant”.
Video campaign targets NCDs risk
A new video campaign warning young people against making lifestyle choices that increase the risk of developing life-threatening non-communicable diseases (NCDs) in adulthood was launched on 2 August. The film, which was developed by the Commonwealth Secretariat and the UK Young Professional Chronic Disease Network, asks governments to address the main factors that contribute to NCDs, such as smoking, unhealthy diets, alcohol abuse and physical inactivity.
Deputy Secretary-General Smith meets Tuvalu Prime Minister
Commonwealth Deputy Secretary-General Ransford Smith held talks with Tuvalu’s Prime Minister Willy Telavi during his visit to the Pacific island state from 9 to 10 August. Discussions focused on preparations for the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in Perth, Australia, in October, and on recommendations from the report of the Eminent Persons Group. Mr Telavi acknowledged the Commonwealth’s past technical support to Tuvalu.
India committed to the Commonwealth
India Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh has reaffirmed his government’s commitment to the Commonwealth. On his visit to India, from 26 to 30 August, the Commonwealth Secretary General was assured by the prime minister that India would continue to strengthen the role, profile and institutions of the Commonwealth. Sharma met with government officials who were briefed on the agenda for CHOGM.
