CHOGM 2013 in Brief

The Commonwealth Youth Forum:

President Mahinda Rajapaksa of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka officially inaugurated the Commonwealth Youth Forum on November 10, 2013 promising to stand by them all step of the way during his tenure as a Chairperson-in-office for the CHOGM.

“…I believe there must be a protection, safeguarding of young adults from the evils of society.  Some of these evils are associated with modern technology. . . .The long term goal is to engage youth who are in pursuit of higher education and others who are not, equally contributing to the development process of the country…,” stated President Rajapaksa during his speech.

The Sri Lankan President further stated that his Government has initiated youth development programmes for the purpose “to engage young grass roots level activists in policy formulation and to expose them to the values and norms of the Commonwealth.” 

Sri Lanka is the host of this year’s Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) held in Colombo, Sri Lanka, replacing Australia’s 2011 biennial Chairmanship.

Prince Charles to arrive Thursday November 14, 2013:

The Prince of Wales and Duchess Camilla are expected to arrive in Colombo, Sri Lanka this Thursday in time to participate in this year’s CHOGM, hosted by Sri Lanka. 

The two will be in the country from November 14-16 and are scheduled to open the Commonwealth Summit and host a customary dinner for the Commonwealth Leaders.  This will be the Duchess of Cornwall’s first official visit to Sri Lanka.

Commonwealth Business Forum:

The Commonwealth Business Forum (CBF) has official opened on November 12, 2013 with aim at bridging together Heads of Government, Ministers and top business leaders from around the world.

The CBF will provide a valuable opportunity for high level dialogue on trade and investment between business and government leaders from the Commonwealth and beyond.  It is in essence a major global business event, coming at a critical time as the developed world continues its efforts to secure recovery from recession, tackle the challenges of maintaining open markets, and when emerging markets are enjoying a greater prominence on the world stage than ever before.

Tanzania is also participating the CBF.

CHOGM to focus on economic and social issues, says Sri Lankan External Affairs Minister:

The Minister for External Affairs in Sri Lanka, Hon. Prof. G.L. Peiris says that “the political issues must not crowd out economic and social issues that are at the very heart of the relevance of the Commonwealth.  If the Commonwealth is to flourish as a vibrant institution it should first build the confidence of the people and there must be proper focuses in finding the solutions to the social issues.”

Source by the Department of Government Information in Sri Lanka