Latest content: Small states

‘Champion’ countries of the Commonwealth Blue Charter - a commitment made by the 53 Commonwealth member states to work together to solve ocean-related problems - are laying the groundwork for joint action and developing robust, innovative strategies to tackle the world’s most pressing ocean issues.

Countries leading action for ocean health and governance in the Commonwealth will meet in London next week to share strategies and firm up plans for action under the Commonwealth Blue Charter. Agreed unanimously by leaders in April 2018, the Commonwealth Blue Charter commits all 53 member countries to work together on solving crucial ocean-related challenges.

To mark World Oceans Day, Head of Oceans and Natural Resources Nicholas Hardman-Mountford shares how the Blue Charter can help spur lasting global change towards sustainable ocean governance.

The Commonwealth and the International Solar Alliance have agreed to work in partnership to promote the development and scaling-up of solar power within member countries common to both organisations

The first Commonwealth forum on sustainable energy opened yesterday in London with a call by the Deputy Secretary-General Arjoon Suddhoo for countries to act collectively on their “passion” to shift to clean energy, while tackling climate change

Secretary-General Patricia Scotland has welcomed reports the government of Brunei Darussalam has placed a full moratorium on the death penalty, inclusive of the Syariah Penal Code Order (SPCO).

Secretary-General Patricia Scotland has re-deployed a Commonwealth Observer Group to observe the referendum in Belize. The referendum was originally scheduled for 10 April, but subsequently postponed to 8 May 2019.

Samoa faced huge flooding in 2018 after torrential rain fell overnight, leaving a trail of destruction, 330 people evacuated and $10 million of infrastructural damage. The lessons learned from this experience made Samoa a suitable location to host the fifth Commonwealth Global Biennial Conference on Small States under the theme ‘Building Resilience Through Disaster Risk Reduction’. The conference brought together officials from 23 small states and 20 development agencies to discuss disaster risk financing solutions.

Commonwealth countries wrapped up two days of deliberations today, with a plan to support micro, small and medium-sized businesses looking to gain a foothold in global markets and supply chains.

A blog by Heather Cover-Kus, Technical Research Officer - Economic Policy and Small States, at the Commonwealth Secretariat

The Commonwealth’s Climate Finance Access Hub aims to more than double the number of advisers deployed to help vulnerable countries unlock funds to tackle climate change.

Pacific youth leaders at the Global Biennial Conference on Small States in Samoa have called for solidarity among young people to urgently address climate change and halt the existential threat to future generations.

A Commonwealth conference to strengthen small states’ access to disaster finance and help build their resilience against external shocks, has started in Samoa today.

Officials from small states have completed specially-designed training aimed at strengthening their skills in disaster risk financing. The two-day session in Samoa on disaster finance and disaster risk management was the first such activity delivered by the Commonwealth in partnership with the World Bank.

Small states in the Commonwealth are ideally placed to benefit from the development of solutions which reduce the devastating impact of natural disasters, according to the Secretary-General Patricia Scotland.

More than 500 representatives from governments, non-profits and global conglomerates joined forces to accelerate resilience building in Caribbean countries still recovering from hurricane devastation.

During the last leg of negotiations at the UN Climate Change Conference (COP24) this week in Poland, the Prime Minister of Tuvalu – an island nation of about 11,000 people located in the South Pacific acutely threatened by climate change – has called on the Commonwealth to leverage its 53-strong membership for climate action.

New research argues that the world’s poorest countries need to change their approach to entrepreneurship, if they want businesses to boost sustainable development. 

The small states of the Commonwealth could be losing out on $4.5 billion of overseas development assistance, a preliminary Commonwealth Secretariat study has shown.

Caribbean countries of the Commonwealth met in Georgetown, Guyana this week to deliberate on how to respond to major shifts in the global trade landscape.