The Gambia with the support of The Commonwealth Secretariat launched its new five-year export strategy aimed at growing dynamic and sustainable economic growth in the country.
Read news - Commonwealth helps The Gambia grow and diversify exportsMain page for this area of work
1 September 2021 to 2 September 2021
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A two-day virtual panel discussion on Public Debt Management in the Wake of the Covid-19 Pandemic: Challenges and Opportunities for Commonwealth Countries.
Emerging petroleum-producing countries in the Commonwealth, and beyond, are striving to break the historical mould of fossil fuel-driven growth and forge a new path towards economic resilience.
Read news - New petroleum producers strive to forge a new development pathEvent
As part of the COVID-19 Policy Briefing Series, this webinar will explore maritime trade landscape in the Commonwealth and demonstrate how maritime trade and shipping can help to revitalise Commonwealth trade post-COVID.
Commonwealth countries are estimated to have lost up to US$345 billion worth of trade in 2020, including $60 billion in intra-Commonwealth trade, according to 2021 Commonwealth Trade Review on “Energising Commonwealth Trade in a Digital World: Paths to Recovery Post-COVID”.
Read press release - US$345 billion loss in trade for Commonwealth countries due to pandemicEvent
This edition of the biennial Commonwealth Trade Review presents new empirical findings about the impact of the pandemic and outlines practical recommendations to boost trade recovery and build resilience, especially by harnessing digital trade and digital technologies, utilising post-Brexit trading opportunities and promoting more sustainable green and blue economies.
Small island developing states (SIDS) face severe structural challenges to their sustainable development.
Read publication - Alternative Development Strategies for SIDSThe Commonwealth Secretariat proposed the development of a global ‘Tourism Action Plan’ to help spur a much-needed recovery.
Read news - Commonwealth Proposes First Global Tourism Action Plan to Spur Post-Covid RecoveryEvent
This joint side event by the Commonwealth Secretariat and the Government of Antigua and Barbuda will focus on the informal use of vulnerability indices in development financing decisions.
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This webinar will provide a practical introduction to investor-state dispute settlement with a focus on the Pacific region.
22 June 2021 to 22 June 2021
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In the face of multiple global crises, debt-for-climate swaps are being widely discussed as an instrument to manage mounting public debts, climate change challenges and Covid-19 recovery. Belize is a small island developing state in the Caribbean region facing these challenges. The Government of Belize has requested the Commonwealth Secretariat to provide assistance to design and implement a ‘Debt for Climate/Nature Swap Mechanism’ for the country.
This paper will first re-examine the importance of remittances to developing countries and will also look at the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on remittances flows in 2020, both across the Commonwealth and beyond.
Read publication - Unravelling the COVID-19 Remittances Puzzle10 June 2021 to 10 June 2021
Event
The Commonwealth Secretariat is hosting a webinar in partnership with Microsoft about the skills that young people need to be competitive as employees, entrepreneurs and digital citizens. Over 60 percent of the Commonwealth's 2.4 billion citizens are aged 29 or under. This webinar will offer an opportunity for young people from across the Commonwealth to talk about their digital skills needs and challenges with industry experts.
There is an urgent need to manage global risks and to deepen our understanding of their implications for Commonwealth development.
Read publication - Commonwealth Economic Development Report 2019Continuing determined action is needed for malaria rates to fall by more than 50 per cent by 2023 to meet the target set out by Commonwealth leaders, the Secretary-General urged on World Malaria Day.
Read news - Commonwealth countries must sustain action on halving malaria by 2023 amid COVID-19The new public debt management legislation passed by The Bahamas will help the country navigate the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic, said Minister of State for Finance, James Thompson.
Read news - The Bahamas passes critical debt management law with Commonwealth Secretariat supportAccess to climate finance is a challenge for many developing countries, including for small island developing states.
Read publication - Earth Observation Technologies for Improved Access to Climate FinanceThis paper aims primarily to contribute to the literature on debt transparency by providing the results of a comprehensive survey on debt transparency undertaken in the Caribbean in 2019.
Read publication - Debt Transparency and Data Quality in the CaribbeanIt is increasingly recognised that sound investment contracts between foreign investors and host states can play an important role in helping countries to meet the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Read publication - Environmental, Social and Economic Development Provisions in Investment ContractsEvent
This virtual event, co-organised by the Commonwealth Secretariat and the Association of Commonwealth Universities (ACU), will focus on the soft infrastructure needs of Commonwealth member countries in relation to training and capacity building around digital infrastructure.
This paper examines enabling frameworks that encourage the investment needed for sustainable energy transitions, including policy, laws, regulations, standards, governance institutions and implementation tools.
Read publication - Enabling Frameworks for Sustainable Energy Transition2 March 2021 to 2 March 2021
Event
In this virtual event, speakers will discuss digital agriculture and digital fisheries, especially during the global health pandemic. The event builds on the outcomes of the 4th Supply-Side Connectivity Cluster meeting of the Commonwealth Connectivity Agenda held in November 2020 which called for a focus on smart agriculture for sustainable development.
The Commonwealth Secretariat has launched a new policy tool to help member countries make informed sport decisions during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Read news - New Commonwealth tool to help improve sport decisions during COVID-19Commonwealth Law Ministers have called for increased international co-operation to enable equal access to Covid-19 vaccinations.
Read news - Law Ministers call for international co-operation on COVID-19 vaccines