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McKinnon calls on Malaysian Prime Minister

25 April 2007

Visit wraps up tour of Southeast Asia

Commonwealth Secretary-General Don McKinnon called on Malaysian Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Haji Ahmad Badawi and Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Syed Hamid Syed Jaafar Albar in Putrajaya on 25 April 2007.

The Prime Minister updated the Secretary-General on his recent visit to Kenya, Namibia and Sudan. They also discussed the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Uganda in November and the mandate to bridge the digital divide among member states through the Commonwealth Connects programme which promotes the use of information and communication technology.

The Secretary-General expressed his appreciation towards the Government of Malaysia for offering to host the 17th Conference of Commonwealth Education Ministers in Malaysia in 2009.

In his meeting with the Foreign Minister, they discussed the situation in Bangladesh, Fiji, Maldives, Nigeria and Pakistan. The talks also focused on the economic benefits of Commonwealth membership, including training opportunities offered under the Commonwealth Fund for Technical Co-operation.

The Secretary-General also paid a visit to the Commonwealth Tourism Centre in Kuala Lumpur that was set up a year ago aimed at developing policies and strategies for sustainable tourism development and investment.

Mr McKinnon returns to the Commonwealth Secretariat in London on 27 April following a tour of Singapore, Brunei Darussalam and Malaysia.