The Commonwealth Heads of State and Government Summit (CHOGM) will be held on 21 June 2012 in Kigali. The Rwandan Head of State, Paul Kagame, and the Secretary General of the Commonwealth, Patricia Scotland, announced on Wednesday 23 September. Important decisions are expected to be taken.
“The CHOGM Rwanda 2021 will be an exceptional opportunity to deliberate together on the enormous technological, ecological and economic challenges and opportunities facing the Commonwealth, especially our youth, which are all the more pressing because of the Covid-19 pandemic,” said the Head of State, Paul Kagame.
The Commonwealth Secretary General, Patricia Scotland also stressed the importance of the Kigali Summit. “At this historic CHOGM, the first to be held in Africa in this millennium, we look forward to Commonwealth leaders coming together to take practical action on the critical issues we all face,” said Patricia Scotland.
“Our meetings in Rwanda will give us a real opportunity to focus on our post-COVID recovery,” Scotland added. “We also know that the pandemic has not diminished the urgency with which global challenges such as climate change, the global economy, trade and sustainable development must be addressed decisively through multilateral cooperation and mutual support,” she said.
The summit of Heads of State and Government will be preceded by meetings for representatives of Commonwealth networks for youth, women, civil society and business.
The Commonwealth is a voluntary association of 54 independent and equal countries. Representing one third of the world, it is home to 2.4 billion people and includes both advanced economies and developing countries. 32 of its members are small states, including many island nations.
CHOGM is usually held every two years and is the highest consultative and decision-making meeting of the Commonwealth. Commonwealth leaders chose Rwanda to host their next summit when they met in London in 2018.
The Commonwealth Heads of State and Government (CHOGM) meeting that was scheduled to take place in Kigali in June 2020 has been postponed due to the impact of COVID-19.
Gérard Rugambwa
