Canada and Commonwealth Secretariat explore partnership in rule of law

Greater collaboration between the Commonwealth Secretariat and Canada’s Department of Justice could benefit the work that both organisations do in strengthening and upholding the rule of law, Akbar Khan, the Secretariat’s top legal adviser has said.

Mr Khan made his comments when Mark Berlin, Director-General of International Legal Programmes at Canada’s Department of Justice visited the Commonwealth Secretariat’s London headquarters on 28 April to explore partnership possibilities.

“This partnership is a fantastic example of the Commonwealth utilising the existing expertise of a member country,” Mr Khan said.

Canada’s International Legal Programmes section delivers programmes globally that focus on international technical legal assistance and institutional capacity-building to countries.

“Canada can’t do it all so it is important that we identify where expertise lie. It’s about identifying willing, able and competent partners,” Mr Berlin noted.

The meeting was chaired by Commonwealth Deputy Secretary-General Mmasekgoa Masire-Mwamba.

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