The Commonwealth: International body born out of colonial past - fast facts
The Commonwealth staged its two-day, biennial summit in London, which closes on Friday.
Fast facts on the group which comprises around a third of the world’s population, a fifth of its landmass and is made up mainly of former British colonies with huge potential for trade.
The Queen and Prince Charles
– Overview –
Full name: Commonwealth of Nations
Member states: 53
Head of the Commonwealth: Queen Elizabeth II (1952-)
Secretary-General: Patricia Scotland (2016-)
Population: 2.4 billion
Area: 30 million square kilometres
Foundation of modern Commonwealth: 1949
Headquarters: Marlborough House, London
Focus: Development, democracy, climate change
– Key moments –
1926: Balfour Declaration. Declares the UK and the dominions as equal in status as members of “the British Commonwealth of Nations”.
1931: Statute of Westminster. Established legislative independence for the dominions and set the basis for the relationship between Commonwealth realms and the crown.
1949: London Declaration. Birth of the modern Commonwealth. Allowed republics as members, to allow independent India’s continued membership. “British” dropped from title.
1971: First Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Singapore.
1991: Harare Declaration. Sets out Commonwealth’s core values.
– Population, area, GDP –
Drawn from: Africa (19), Caribbean and Americas (13), Pacific (11), Asia (7), Europe (3).
Biggest country by population: India (1.25 billion)
Smallest country by population: Tuvalu (10,000)
Biggest country by area: Canada (9,984,670 square kilometres)
Smallest country by area: Nauru (21 sq km)
Biggest GDP: UK, India, Canada, Australia, Nigeria.
Smallest GDP: Tuvalu, Kiribati, Tonga, Dominica, St. Vincent and the Grenadines.
– Membership –
Criteria: Historic association with existing member; compliance with Commonwealth principles; commitment to democracy, rule of law and good governance.
Members in 1949: Australia, Canada, Ceylon, India, New Zealand, Pakistan, South Africa, United Kingdom.
Latest first-time members: Rwanda (2009), Mozambique (1995) Cameroon (1995), Namibia (1990), Brunei (1984).
Countries which left and rejoined: South Africa (1961-1994), Pakistan (1972-1989), Fiji (1987-1997), The Gambia (2013-2018).
Countries which left and never returned: Ireland (1949), Zimbabwe (2003) and the Maldives (2016).
– Main Commonwealth events –
Summit: The Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting, CHOGM, is held every two years.
Commonwealth Games: The Olympics-style multi-sport event is held every four years.
– Commonwealth in 2018 –
CHOGM held in London, April 19-20. Main agenda points: ocean governance charter, trade and investment agenda, tackling cyber crime.
Commonwealth Games held in Gold Coast, Australia, April 4-15. Australia topped the medals table ahead of England, India, Canada and New Zealand.
Sources Vanguard | JIC Media
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6 年Despite it's colonial past the Commonwealth has some positives and much potential. The onus is on the member states to shape the organisation and ensure it remains relevant and useful. Perhaps an opportunity was already missed in the acceptance of Prince Charles as the next leader of the Commonwealth? The idea of a rotating leadership was interesting. With Brexit approaching surely it is time for the members of the Commonwealth including some of Africa's fastest growing economies to realise the strength of their position and assert themselves in future negotiations.
EXECUTIVE SECRETARY- Civil Society Coalition for African Continental Free Trade Area (CSCAfCFTA
6 年Thanks Sharing
Focussing on digital transformation ???? #PROJECT? ???????? etc.
6 年… good to see countries working TOGETHER outside the UN … … that realises POSITIVE things … … … I ‘m working on it every day of the Week / Month / Year … … . . . on connecting … … connecting countries for the WWFFII ^ v ^ project … … … maybe the Commonwealth can contribute to that as well … … please … … we need YOUR vote(s)