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Small States Forum

18 September, 2006 Small States Forum

On Monday 18th September, representatives of small developing countries that are members of the World Bank met in Singapore for the 2006 Small States Forum.

The Forum brought together representatives of 45 small developing countries and partner institutions, including the Commonwealth Secretariat, European Union, IMF, UNCTAD, World Bank and WTO. The conference was chaired by Vanuatu and the Pacific Islands Forum, in keeping with the 2004 agreement for a biennially revolving Chair around the main small state regions.

The three sessions at this year's forum focused on private sector development, labour mobility and remittances, and enhancing small state development efforts. The Forum discussed the results of a number of country-based consultations carried out over the last year on the Joint Commonwealth/World Bank Task Force Report of April 2000 entitled, Toward an Outward-Oriented Development Strategy for Small States: Issues, Opportunities, and Resilience Building: the Review of the Small States Agenda. At these consultations, Ministers considered the conclusions of the review and the recommendations made for further implementation of the 2000 Report. This review procedure ensures a better position from which to galvanise the support of other bilateral and multilateral agencies in assisting small states to address their vulnerability and help build resilience in the years ahead.

Also discussed were the draft proposal of the Government of Malta for the establishment of a Small States Network for Economic Development, and the agenda for the 2007 Small States Forum.

A full report of the outcomes of the Forum will be made available on this website in due course.

24 September, 2005: Small States Forum, World Bank, Washington DC

The 2005 Small States Forum took place on 24 September at the World Bank in Washington DC in conjunction with the World Bank Group/International Monetary Fund Annual Meetings. It was attended by representatives of 45 small developing countries that are members of the World Bank, and partner institutions, including Commonwealth Secretariat, European Union, UNCTAD, World Bank and World Trade Organisation.

The theme of the meeting was "Towards an Outward-Oriented Development Strategy for Small States: Issues, Opportunities and Resilience Building". Participants discussed the constraints and opportunities faced by these countries and reviewed the small states agenda set out in the Commonwealth/World Bank Joint Task Force Report in 2000. The Prime Minister of St Kitts & Nevis, Denzil Douglas, chaired the meeting.

For a full report and documentation relating to the meeting see: www.worldbank.org/smallstates