Commonwealth Foundation
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The Commonwealth Foundation is an intergovernmental organisation that was established by the Commonwealth Heads of Government in 1965, the same year as its sister organisation, the Commonwealth Secretariat. The Foundation is located at Marlborough House in London, a former royal palace which was given by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, Head of the Commonwealth.
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[edit] History
Whilst the Commonwealth Secretariat was established to support the political endeavours of the Commonwealth, the 'Foundation was brought into being in the hope that it would give further substance to the old truism that the Commonwealth is as much an association of peoples as of governments.' [1].
The Commonwealth Foundation was originally registered as a Charitable Trust under English Law and mandated to promote professional co-operation among Commonwealth countries. In 1969 Chadwick summarised the aims of the Foundation as:
'(1) To encourage the growth of Commonwealthwide professional associations (and in this field, of course, the Commonwealth Medical Association was a helpful pioneer). (2) To help to create national professional societies as part of a general process of 'deanglicization'. (3) To promote regional professional activity. (4) To encourage the personal interchange of skills and experience. (5) To aid the broadening of experience through the printed word.'
In the 1960's, the Foundation implemented these aims by focusing on three main areas of work namely the creation of Commonwealth-wide professional associations; dissemination of printed information and helping individuals.
When the Foundation was formed, at least two Commonwealth professional associations already existed namely the Commonwealth Medical Association and the Commonwealth Association of Architects. With the Foundation's encouragement and support (which included grants for travel and administrative costs), several other professional developed - including bodies working in the legal, vetinary and surveying fields. Many of these associations continue to function today. According to Chadwick (1969), rather than encouraging 'professional exclusivity' the secretariats of these associations were designed to 'collate and disseminate professional views and experience, co-ordinate programmes for Commonwealth wide or regional meetings; stimulate studies on training, curricula, reciprocity, standards, publications and the like.'
Complementing its work with the professional associations, the Foundation provided grants to help with journal subscriptions. For example, it paid the subscription cost of Tropical Diseases Bulletin so it could be sent to teaching hospitals, medical associations and libraries in developing countries.
During the 1960's the Foundation's third area of activity was to help individual professionals. In the space of two years it gave travel grants to about '200 doctors and paramedical personnel within the Commonwealth' allowing them to attend, for example, international conferences and participate in refresher courses (Chadwick, 1969).
Although changes were made to the way in which the programmes were administered, these three areas of activity continued over the following decade.
In 1979, the Foundation's mandate was extended to include work with a broader range of non-governmental organisations involved in work such as rural development, social welfare, disability, gender and arts and culture. Three years later, a decision was made to reconstitute the Foundation as an International Organisation – a process that was completed in 1983. Since then, the remit of the Commonwealth Foundation has continued to broaden. It now works with non-governmental and voluntary organisations, faith-based institutions, the media and trade unions with the aim of strengthening civil society and enhancing its contribution to development in the Commonwealth.
In 2004, the Commonwealth Foundation revised its governance structure to include civil society representatives. Uniquely for an intergovernmental organisation, five members of civil society now sit on the Board of Governors alongside representatives of member governments
[edit] Membership
Membership of the Foundation is open to all 53 Commonwealth governments; associated States and Territories are eligible to become associate members. As of December 2006, there were 46 member countries namely Antigua and Barbuda, Australia, The Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Botswana, Brunei Darussalam, Cameroon, Canada, Cyprus, Dominica, The Gambia, Ghana, Gibraltar (associate), Grenada, Guyana, India, Jamaica, Kenya, Kiribati, Lesotho, Malawi, Malaysia, Malta, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, New Zealand, Nigeria, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Samoa, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Singapore, Solomon Islands, Sri Lanka, Swaziland, Tonga, Trinidad and Tobago, Uganda, United Kingdom, United Republic of Tanzania, Zambia.
[edit] Governance
The Board of Governors comprises all member Governments (usually represented by their London-based High Commissioners) and five civil society representatives. The Board meets annually and is supported by the Executive and Grants Committees which meet twice yearly. In addition, there are two advisory committees namely the Civil Society Advisory Committee and Commonwealth Writers' Prize Advisory Committee.
Throughout its' history, the Foundation has been lead by highly accomplished people. The first Chairman of the Foundation was Sir Macfarlane Burnet and the first Director was John Chadwick. Today, the Chairman of the Foundation is Guido de Marco and the Director is Mark Collins.
[edit] Vision and Mission
The vision of the Commonwealth Foundation is for a world where:
Commonwealth civil society contributes to national and international goals for democracy, sustainable development and cultural diversity for the benefit of all people.
Its mission is to:
Enhance the role of civil society organisations in governance, democracy, sustainable development and culture by strengthening their institutional and human capacity, and creating opportunity and space for partnership, participation, advice and leadership, thereby achieving lasting improvements in the lives of Commonwealth people.
[edit] Programmes of Work
The work of the Foundation currently focuses on three main issues, namely governance and democracy; sustainable development and culture and diversity.
[edit] Commonwealth People's Forum
The Commonwealth People’s Forum takes place every two years immediately preceding the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM). The Forum is organised by the host government, civil society organisations and the Foundation. It gives civil society organisations (CSOs) a chance to network and dialogue with governments. Since the first Forum in 1997, the event has increased in size and the range of activities that take place has been expanded. The external links below take you to two previous Forum websites.
The first Forum was in Edinburgh, Scotland (1997). Subsequently, it has been held in Durban, South Africa (1999); Brisbane, Australia (2001); Abuja, Nigeria (2003) and Malta (2005). The 2007 Forum will take place in Kampala, Uganda.
[edit] Competitions and Awards
As part of its work to promote culture and diversity, the Foundation – often in association with other organisations – runs several awards and prizes.
In 1987, the Commonwealth Writers Prize was established and has run every year since then. The Prize promotes literary talent in the Commonwealth and encourages reading between cultures. In the same year, the Commonwealth Arts and Crafts Award was also launched. This biennial event aims to promote cultural understanding through art and gives winning artists an opportunity to work with and learn from artists in another Commonwealth country.
In 1996, the Commonwealth Short Story competition was established and is administered by the Commonwealth Broadcasting Association. Each year, regional winners are chosen for Africa, Asia, Caribbean and Canada, Europe and the Pacific. One is then selected as the overall winner. The winning entries are recorded and broadcast by radio stations across the Commonwealth. Erin Soros, from Canada, won the 2006 competition with the short story 'The Moon, the Cat and the Donkey'.
[edit] References
- ^ Chadwick J, (1969) The Commonwealth Foundation - Progress 1966-1969; Royal Society of Medicine 62 (11P1) pp 1145-1147
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
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