The Government of Malta and the Commonwealth have signed a landmark agreement to enhance the capacity of small states to record, analyse and manage their debt.
This took place on 25 June 2014 at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Valetta, Malta.
Commonwealth Deputy Secretary-General Deodat Maharaj signed on behalf of the Secretariat, while and the Director-General of Malta's Treasury Department, Ministry of Finance Noel Camilleri signed on behalf of the Government of Malta.
The initiative will see the Treasury Department of Malta supporting the Secretariat's Debt Management Programme to provide policy advice and capacity building to Commonwealth small states, sharing the country’s best practices in the area. Many of the small states are currently facing significant debt management challenges with the growing burden of debt.
With the Commonwealth Secretariat assisting 40 member states to strengthen sovereign debt management through appropriate policy framework, institutional arrangements and capacity, this initiative will pave the way for a focused approach to deal with the specific challenges of small states.
Both Deputy Secretary-General Maharaj and Director General Camilleri hailed the initiative as a unique partnership and an excellent demonstration of facilitating practical collaboration across the Commonwealth family.