By the Editor

We asked participants at the event to come share their views on the issues at our makeshift ‘diary room’. Here’s the fifth.

Click here if you can’t see the video below.

By the Editor

We asked participants at the event to come share their views on the issues at our makeshift ‘diary room’. Here’s the fourth.

Click here if you can’t see the video below.

By the Editor

We asked participants at the event to come share their views on the issues at our makeshift ‘diary room’. Here’s the third.

Click here if you can’t see the video below.

By Charles Odongtho

Out going Secretary-General of the Commonwealthh, Don McKinnon wants leaders of the 53 member states to set out priority plans to tackle the challenges of Climate Change and Balance of Trade between countries. Mckinnon considers these two issues are currently the biggest challenges to be resolved.

On Tuesday evening on the BBC World Service programme“Have Your Say”, which was relayed live from Uganda’s capital Kampala, several Ugandans criticized the Commonwealth calling it an irrelevance and a mere party club. They said it has little impact on modern Africa because the delegates just come, meet and exchange business cards, eat and drink well and then go home.

But the Secretary-General disagrees. He pointed out that during his last visit to war-affected Northern Uganda, he visited development projects set up by the Commonwealth to rehabilitate youths who had been abducted by the Lords Resistance Army (LRA) rebels.

Don Mckinnon does not hide his disappointment with Uganda’s main opposition leaders who have boycotted the Commonwealth meeting. The opposition in Uganda say they have become cynical of an organization that cannot address their concerns on human rights and governance.

Mckinnon, who will be replaced by a new Secretary-General at the end of this week’s summit, said the meeting is crucial for the entire host country and not just for the ruling government. He said he met the country’s opposition four months ago and they had assured him they would participate.

He said that countries with good and established democratic institutions and good governance structures can benefit more from Commonwealth membership. He said it is important for all member countries, Uganda included, to build institutions that can help to build global confidence in their people.

See Don Mckinnon’s blog on the Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting here.

I interviewed Don earlier. Below are both an excerpt and the full interview I carried out with him. In the excerpt, Don talks about having congruence between policy and projects ‘on the ground.’

Excerpt audio

Click to download a low bandwidth file here, or press play below:

Full interview

Click to download a low bandwidth file here, or press play below:

By the Editor

We asked participants at the event to come share their views on the issues at our makeshift ‘diary room’. Here’s the second.

Click here if you can’t see the video below.

By Elizabeth Kameo

Tuesday 20, British Council supported workshop that focused on Civil Leaders Effecting Transforming.

The workshop was based on the belief that civil society in the Commonwealth states has been widely heralded as the force to bring increasing democracy and equality to the world, often cited as a crucial counter-balance to private industry and governments.

At the end of the two days, participants from across the spectrum in the Commonwealth states had a lot to say about lessons learned and how they will use them in their future work and to overcome challenges.

A few examples feature below:

Olive Mumba

Click to download a low bandwidth file here or press play below:

Amani Golugwa

Click to download a low bandwidth file here or press play below:

Festus Minah

Click to download a low bandwidth file here or press play below:

By the Editor

We asked participants at the event to come share their views on the issues at our makeshift ‘diary room’. Here’s the first.

Click here if you can’t see the video below.

By Charles Odongtho

Journalists have warned Commonwealth countries and global development agencies that the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) risk failing if freedom of the media and expression is not given a priority by Commonwealth governments.

Over 100 journalists who met to discuss issues they want their heads of state and government to address when they meet in Kampala from tomorrow said they are concerned about the rising incidents of harassment, imprisonment and deaths, especially countries going through war.

The MDGs include eight minimum targets set by the United Nations to be achieved by the year 2015. They range from halving extreme poverty to halting the spread of HIV/AIDS and providing universal primary education.

Their main aim is to address extreme poverty levels in the world.

Nupur Basu, an independent journalist in India referred to the closing down of media houses by Pakistani leader, General Pervez Musharraf. She called upon the leaders of the Commonwealth countries to impose more harsh conditions on Musharaf to force him to adhere with full democratic principles.

James Deane, the Head of Policy Development with the BBC World Service Trust said that in a dictatorial environment, no free media can exist.

“We believe that the character of the media determines the character of a country’s democracy”, the final communiqué by the journalists said.

The communiqué is to be discussed by the heads of state and government when they meet from tomorrow.

The journalists said the leaders should take steps aimed at addressing the issue of ownership of the media so that media content is not compromised.

“A free flow of information underpins democratic, social and economic development, and is a principal pillar for the achievement of development progress”, the journalists said in their communiqué.