Sharma meets Lesotho Prime Minister Mosisili

Commonwealth Secretary-General Kamalesh Sharma met Lesotho Prime Minister Pakalitha Mosisili in London on Friday, 4 July 2008 and underlined the important collaboration between the Kingdom of Lesotho and the 53-member Commonwealth.

At the meeting during the Africa Business Forum, Mr Sharma and Mr Mosisili discussed ongoing Commonwealth support to Lesotho in consolidation of good governance, other forms of technical assistance, as well as closer co-operation through the regional Southern African Development Community (SADC).

Mr Sharma offered Commonwealth assistance in providing expertise to support Lesotho's judiciary. He also emphasised the development of youth entrepreneurship in Lesotho, stating that "we need to nurture our youth to aspire to become job creators and agents of wealth creation, and not just job-seekers." The youth are a major focus of the Secretary-General.

The Secretary-General reaffirmed the Commonwealth's support for all regional initiatives aimed at bringing about positive change in Zimbabwe.

Mr Sharma reiterated the Commonwealth's support for the implementation of the recommendations of the Commonwealth Expert Team following the Lesotho Parliamentary Elections in 2007, in particular the operational modalities of the Mixed Member Proportion parliamentary system. He also promised support in building the capacity of Lesotho in strengthening its public accountability mechanisms to tackle corruption and economic crime.

The Secretary-General saw the Africa Business Forum, organised by the Commonwealth Business Council, as an important step towards meeting Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) in Africa - centred on halving poverty by 2015. He stressed the importance of African leaders, the Commonwealth, and the wider international community working together to ensure that Africa achieves the MDGs.

"We can generate added impetus towards the MDGs and tackling food security with the Commonwealth's diversity of leaders speaking with one voice," Mr Sharma said.

Secretariat Links:

• Country Profile: Lesotho
• Commonwealth Secretary-General