Secretary-General calls on NZ Speaker of the House of Representatives

Commonwealth Secretary-General Kamalesh Sharma was given a Maori ceremonial welcome to New Zealand in its capital, Wellington, on 18 August 2008.

The Secretary-General, who is on his first official visit to New Zealand, held talks with the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Margaret Wilson. She is also President of the New Zealand branch of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association.

Their talks revolved around the issue of interaction among parliamentarians in the Commonwealth and the vital role of governance, democracy and the rule of law.

The Secretary-General also met senior foreign affairs officials to discuss progress in implementing political mandates set at the last Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Kampala in 2007, as well as the reform of international institutions and support for small states in responding to the challenges of climate change. There was also discussion on developments in Fiji Islands ahead of the Pacific Islands Forum Summit in Niue, and the September meeting in New York of the Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group.

Secretary-General Kamalesh Sharma with Margaret Wilson, Speaker of the New Zealand House of Representatives

In a meeting with the Executive Director of the New Zealand Agency for International Aid (NZAID), Dr Peter Adams, and his senior officials, Mr Sharma outlined his desire to work more closely with NZAID to strengthen governance, enhance development assistance and improve growth and the capacities of Commonwealth countries through greater co-ordination and coherence in technical assistance programmes. They discussed the role of the Commonwealth Fund for Technical Co-operation and its capacity-building programmes for the Pacific region. NZAID provides £1.5 million annually to the Commonwealth Fund, and a further £240,000 a year to fund the Commonwealth Youth Programme (CYP), which is targeted at improving skills and opportunities for young people. The Commonwealth Secretariat manages four regional CYP youth centres - in Solomon Islands for the Pacific region; India for the Asia region; Guyana for the Caribbean region; and Zambia for the Africa region.

Also on 18 August, Mr Sharma delivered the 7th Annual Foreign Policy Lecture to the New Zealand Institute of International Affairs.

The Secretary-General was scheduled to meet his Special Representative Sir Paul Reeves and Foreign Minister Winston Peters in Auckland on 19 August, before heading to the 39th Pacific Islands Forum Summit in Alofi, Niue, from 19 to 21 August.

Key Links:

• Country Profile: New Zealand
• Secretary-General
• Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group
• Commonwealth Youth Programme

Related News:

• NZAID
• New Zealand Parliament