The Heads of Government of the 53 member states of the Commonwealth will be holding their next biennial meeting this year in Malta.
For the last 10 years, the Commonwealth Foundation has hosted civil society activities in advance of such meetings through a Commonwealth People’s Forum (CPF). The overall purpose of the CPF is to provide opportunities for networking and interaction among civil society organisations in the Commonwealth as well as to showcase the contribution of these organisations to the fundamental principles and values of the Commonwealth, particularly those of sustainable development, poverty eradication, democracy and good governance.
The organisation of the Malta CPF will be the responsibility of a Steering Committee comprising representatives of Maltese civil society, the government and five members of the Civil Society Advisory Committee of the Commonwealth Foundation. The Steering Committee will be the official host of the Forum and will oversee the planning as well as organisation of the CPF, with the assistance of the Foundation staff.
The Steering Committee is having its second meeting in Malta today. During the meeting it will discuss various issues, particularly a programme for civil society activities, an arts and culture programme as well as logistics questions.
In particular, the Committee will discuss the opening ceremony of the Forum and the activities planned for Children’s Day and Gozo Day.
In the evening, there will be a briefing session for civil society organisations and NGO’s. The main purpose behind this session is to brief civil society in Malta about the events planned to be held in November and the manner in which civil society organisations and NGOs can be involved.
The briefing will take place at the premises of the Malta Federation of Professional Associations, Sliema Road, Gzira.