Commonwealth Nations

Presented by,
Joshi Sanket (50)
Kavitha N. (53)
Krithiha Kumar (55)
Leena Joe (57)
Lopamudra Panda (58)
 Commonwealth of Nations

• The Commonwealth of Nations is an intergovernmental organisation of fifty-

four independent member states

• Member States – British colonies – previously known as ‘British

Commonwealth’ Microsoft Office
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• Voluntary membership

• Headquarters - Marlborough House, London, United Kingdom

• Biennial Meetings between Commonwealth Heads of Government

• The Commonwealth lists its areas of work as: Democracy, Economics,

Education, Gender, Governance, Human Rights, Law, Small States, Sports,
Sustainability and Youth
 Commonwealth – Objectives
• The Commonwealth has a secretariat to oversee its business, but
no formal constitution or international laws. It does, however, have
an ethical and moral code, first expressed in the Singapore
Declaration of Commonwealth Principles (1971)
“members agree to operate on the principles of: peace,
democracy, liberty, equality and an end to racism and
poverty”

• Later refined and expanded in the Harare Declaration (1991)

“set the Commonwealth on a new course: that of promoting
democracy and good governance, human rights and the
rule of law, gender equality and sustainable economic and
social development”
 Commonwealth of nations - History
• 1884: ‘Commonwealth of Nations’ was used to describe the new relationships
between Britain and its colonies by Lord Rosebury

• 1949
– Beginning of the Modern Commonwealth
– London Declaration allowed republics to retain membership, acknowledging King
George VI as Head of the Commonwealth

• 1952: Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II who becomes Head of the Commonwealth

• 1965
– Commonwealth Secretariat set up to administer Commonwealth economic and
international affairs
– Commonwealth Foundation set up

• 1971: Singapore Declaration of Commonwealth Principles

• 1991: Harare Commonwealth Declaration sets the associations priorities for the
1990’s and beyond
 The three intergovernmental organisations
• Commonwealth Secretariat - executes plans agreed by Commonwealth Heads
of Government through technical assistance, advice and policy development
– The Secretariat has 12 divisions and units which carry out programmes of
work based on mandates set by Commonwealth Heads of Government at their
biennial summit (CHOGM)
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• Commonwealth Foundation - helps civil society organisations promote

democracy, development and cultural understanding

• Commonwealth of Learning - encourages the development and sharing of open

learning and distance education
 Who’s Who??
• Head of the Commonwealth Queen Elizabeth II (since 6 Feb 1952)

• Secretary-General Kamalesh Sharma (since 1 Apr 2008)

• Chairperson-in-Office Patrick Manning (since 27 Nov 2009)

WHAT COMMONWEALTH DOES?
Democracy and Consensus Building

Objective
– stronger democratic institutions and processes
Relevance
– Emphasize on fundamental values as well as
practical action
– Protection and promotion of democracy based on
substance
– Ensure participation of all citizens in such
practices
Impact
 Supporting Economic Development
• Objective
– Strengthen the policies and system supporting economic
growth
• Relevance
– Mandated by commonwealth heads of governments and
ministerial meetings
– Demand for assistance
– To be flexible and responsive to the needs of membership
• Impact
– Promotion of successive stages of debt relief in international
system
 Education and Human Development
• Objective
– High quality of education regardless of their gender, age, socio-economic
status or ethnicity

• Relevance
– Millennium development goals and education for all
– Universal primary education, elimination of gender disparities, improvement
of quality, distance learning, support in difficult circumstances and mitigation
of HIV impact in education

• Impact
– Focus on neglected section, improved teaching and management
processes, informed policies and strategies
 Environmentally Sustainable
Development
• Objective
– Promote and support economic and social development
especially the small and least developed, environmentally
sustainable
• Relevance
– Addressing the impact of climate change, growth in
urbanization and overcrowded slums
• Impact
– Guyana agricultural and climate change effect awareness
HOW IT DOES?
 Policy Development
• Commonwealth heads of government meetings and ministerial
meetings seek solutions and develop policies

• Secretariat implements programs

• Commonwealth heads of government meeting (CHOGM)

• Issues discussed in CHOGM-peace and security, democracy,

good governance, sustainable development, debt management,
education, environment, gender equality, health, human rights,
information and communication technology, law, multilateral trade
issues, small states and youth affairs
 Technical Assistance
• Sending long and short term experts to work
in governments and national or regional
organizations

• Setting up projects and programs boosting the

ability of the country in a particular field

• Commonwealth Fund for Technical Co-

operation (CFTC)
 Funding
• Budget of secretariat itself is based on
assessed contributions- agreed scales
based on capacity

• Voluntary contributions for CFTC

• Abuja guidelines govern the procedure for

dealing with arrears of contributions
 India and the
Commonwealth
• India joined Commonwealth in 1947

• India has commitments to invest in the Commonwealth in the

fields of information and communication technology, sport and
training opportunities

• The Government of India is currently a major financier of the

Commonwealth Connects programme, which promotes the
development of ICT policies at national government level as well
as the implementation of practical ICT projects for development.

• India’s current contribution to Commonwealth Connects is 1

million Euros
• These include the provision of technical and other support
for a new Commonwealth ‘Partnership Platform Portal’,
which is aimed at strengthening connectivity and access to
information and development opportunities.

• In addition, there will be assistance extended to explore and

develop a potential pan-Commonwealth programme to
promote access to the many communities of
Commonwealth citizens living outside their home countries
under a proposed new Diaspora project.
 Commonwealth Games

• The Commonwealth Games is a multinational, multi-

sport event. Held every four years, it involves the elite
athletes of the Commonwealth of Nations

• The Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF) is the

organisation that is responsible for the direction and
control of the Commonwealth Games

• The first such event, then known as the British Empire

Games, was held in 1930 in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada
 Commonwealth Games 2010

• 3-14 October,2010 in New Delhi

• GNCTD has allocated a sum of Rs 11.89
billion to enhance, expand and upgrade city
infrastructure.
• XIX Commonwealth Games 2010 Delhi will
feature 17 sports
• Hosting a sporting event at a scale such as the Commonwealth Games is a
matter of international prestige for the country, and is bound to boost brand
India.

• Delhi too, as the host city, will get the chance to exhibit a new image for itself
– that of a world class city with international standards. Improved
infrastructure and appearance of the host city, and global media exposure will
serve to transform the image of the city.

• Another legacy of the Games will be the social, economic and physical
regeneration of Delhi. The Games will help to boost urban renewal, create
jobs, increase investment and transform the landscape of the city.

• Another sector that has seen huge improvements is transportation: flyovers,

bypasses, broader roads, a larger metro system, an integrated Rail Bus
Transport system and a High Capacity Bus system. These are all aimed to
ease traffic congestion and transit for Delhi’s citizens.

• The modernisation of the Indira Gandhi International Airport will treble

capacity and go a long way towards improving connectivity within India and
with the rest of the world.
 Commonwealth in Recent News
• Nov 2009 - Port of Spain Climate Change consensus –
Partnering for a more Equitable & Sustainable future
• Increase technology support to CDC to facilitate deployment of clean
technologies
• Enable transition to low-emission economies, climate resilience
• Develop cleaner, more affordable and renewable energy sources

• June 2009 - 1.6 million pound pledge to Commonwealth

Scholarship fund - Governments in Kenya, Malaysia & UK
• CSFP in 1959
• 27,000 students from every commonwealth country benefited
• Increase higher education opportunities in CDC
• Scholarships to be increasingly offered to low and middle income countries
• April 1 ,2009 – Statement on Regulation of IFCs
– Welcomes efforts to strengthen regulatory architecture
– Reduce global inequality - international standard setting
exercises need to promote a level playing field and fair
competition
– Concern of small states should be included in
participation of regulations that apply globally
• Assisted OECD Global Level Playing Subgroup
– Money laundering & Tax evasion – Provides assistance
to develop legislation & strengthen institutions
 Commonwealth Study on Surging Food
Prices (2008)

• Large number of CDCs severely affected by rising food,

oil prices and adverse poverty
• Impact on Africa's Achievement of MDG – greater
challenge
– African agriculture to grow at 7.5% per annum ->
Governmental agriculture spending in Sub Saharan
Africa to increase from $2.9bn to $13.7bn/year
– (with rising food prices) 8.5% per year -> Spending of
$16bn/year
 Future Agenda
• Climate change consensus
• Law for the Harare Scheme
• Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of
Terrorism
• Small Arms and Light Weapons (SALW)
• Human Trafficking control
• Commonwealth games
• eHealthy future
 Conclusion
• Steady decline in popularity

• No clear area where commonwealth distinctly adds value

• To improve – redesign its principles, priorities and people

 References
• http://www.thecommonwealth.org/Internal/191086/34493/14
0633/timeline/
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Commonwealth_of_Nations
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Commonwealth_of_Nations#Obj
ectives_and_activities
• http://europeanhistory.about.com/od/ukandireland/a/commo
nwealth.htm