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Secretary-General Visits The Gambia, Sierra Leone and Ghana

6 May 2004

Commonwealth Secretary-General Don McKinnon is paying official visits to The Gambia, Sierra Leone and Ghana. He is following up on mandates from the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) held in Abuja, Nigeria, in December 2003, and discussing preparations for the next CHOGM due to take place in Malta in 2005.

The Queen Mother of the Asante nation was at the commemoration
The Queen Mother of the Asante nation at the Adaekese' Festival in Ghana
His discussions will also focus on Commonwealth programmes of co-operation and technical assistance and issues relating to international trade, economic development and the New Partnership for Africa's Development.
 
In The Gambia, where he arrived on 2 May 2004, the Secretary-General today (5 May) met with the President, Alhaji Yahya Jammeh. Earlier he had meetings with the Attorney-General and Secretary of State for Justice, Sheikh Tijan Ayidara, and the Acting Chief Justice, Jibou Semaga-Janneh. He also met with two experts, Shanaka Manoj Wijesinghe of Sri Lanka and Justice Nkemdilim Amelia Izuako of Nigeria, who are serving in The Gambia as Prosecuting State Counsel and Judge of the High Court respectively, on assignments funded by the Commonwealth Fund for Technical Co-operation (CFTC) in collaboration with the UK's Department for International Development (DfID).

Mr McKinnon also addressed a cross-party meeting of Parliamentarians chaired by the Speaker, Sheriff Mustapha Adiba, and visited a school near the country's capital Banjul where he met with more than 100 pupils from various schools in the area.

The Secretary-General today arrived in Sierra Leone, where he is expected to hold consultations with the President, Alhaji Ahmad Tejan Kabbah, the Vice-President, Solomon Berewa, the Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Co-operation, Momodu Koroma, and other senior Ministers. He will also meet with members of the Special Court for Sierra Leone.
 
Mr McKinnon is expected to travel to Kambia, north of the capital, Freetown, to commission the Kamcashew agro-processing project, which is jointly funded by the CFTC and DfID. 

On 8 May, the Secretary-General will travel to Ghana, where he will meet with the President, John A Kufuor, and the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Nana Akuffo-Addo. He will also attend the 'Adaekese' Festival, celebrating the 5th anniversary of the King of Ashanti's accession to the Golden Stool in Kumasi on 9 May, following an invitation from the King, HRH Otumfuo Osei Tutu II.


CNIS - the Commonwealth News and Information Service, Issue 182         5 May 2004

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