By Tione Andsen
Lilongwe March 9, Mana: British Government has committed to delivering Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) 2018 commitments as Chair-in-Office.
The British High Commissioner to Malawi, Holly Tett said this Monday in Lilongwe during the celebration of the Commonwealth Day.
She said this is a special year for the Commonwealth and Africa as the Commonwealth day is coming three months before the next CHOGM to take place in Kigali, Rwanda.
“The previous CHOGM took place in the UK where our leaders, including Malawi President Prof, Peter Mutharika, made a number of commitments,” Tett recalled.
She added that as hosts of CHOGM 2018, the UK assumed the role of Chair-in-Office, a responsibility which we would hand over to Rwanda in June.
“We already have a long standing commitment to the Commonwealth and, as Chair-in-Office; the UK has driven delivery of the fairer, more prosperous, more secure and more sustainable future that leaders committed to at CHOGM 2018. This includes £500m of UK-funded projects which will and continue to benefit all Commonwealth members,” the High Commissioner explained.
Tett said Malawi’s connections to the Commonwealth, shared Commonwealth values and impressive achievements of some UK-funded Commonwealth programmes that have been running in the country.
She said Malawi was on track to eliminate blinding trachoma by the end of this year with the help of £50 million between 2013-19 of matched UK government funding to the Queen Elizabeth Diamond Jubilee Trust have supported Malawi and Mozambique in achieving this.
The High Commissioner pointed out that Malawi was benefitting from the Queen Elizabeth Commonwealth Scholarships (QECS) which has 18 awards shared across 14 host universities in 12 countries.
“The famous Commonwealth Scholarships delivered under Commonwealth Scholarship and Fellowship Plan (CSFP) and Commonwealth Scholarship Commission in the United Kingdom (CSC). Over its 60 year history, the CSFP has supported over 36,000 individuals, with over 28,600 supported by the CSC,” Tett said.
She said the CSC currently awards some 750 new scholarships and fellowships for postgraduate study and professional development to Commonwealth citizens each year 22 new awards were offered to individuals in the country for the 2019/20 intake.
Chairperson for the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association in Malawi, Abel Kayembe said Commonwealth parliamentary has contributed skills development among legislators in providing policy development and implementation.
He said Malawi’s Parliament involvement in the Association has helped in developing strategic partnership with UK, Canadian and Scottish parliaments.
The Commonwealth is a diverse network of 54 equal and independent countries; home to 2.4 billion people, a third of the world’s population, of which nearly 60 per cent is under 30.
Its members, citizens and businesses benefit from a shared language, common values, and similar legal and institutional systems.
Mana/tha
