Hon. Alan Ganoo, GCSK, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Regional Integration and International Trade, is currently in the United Kingdom to represent Mauritius at the celebrations of the Commonwealth Day on 13 March 2023. He also and participated in the first meeting of the newly reconstituted Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group (CMA)] on 14 March 2023, followed by the Commonwealth Foreign Affairs Ministerial Meeting (CFAMM) on 15 March 2023.
On Monday 13 March 2023, the Hon. Minister was present at the Commonwealth Day Service graced by HM King Charles III, Head of the Commonwealth, and the Commonwealth Day Raising of the Flag for Peace Ceremony at Marlborough House.
On Tuesday 14 March 2023, the Hon. Minister attended the First Meeting of the newly reconstituted CMAG. The CMAG was established by the Commonwealth in 1995 to act as the custodian of the Commonwealth’s fundamental political values, addressing country situations where serious or persistent violations of Commonwealth values have occurred, agreeing on a series of measures which the CMAG should take in response to such violations while supporting the strengthening of democracy in member countries and enhancing the Commonwealth’s profile on the international stage.
Hon. Alan Ganoo recalled that this is the first time that Mauritius serves in the CMAG and reaffirmed our steadfast commitment to the purposes and principles of the Commonwealth. He also availed of the opportunity to commend the good offices of the Commonwealth Secretary General to instill the spirit of togetherness and integration in our shared commitments to and advocacy on peace and good governance.
Minister and the High Commissioner of Mauritius to the UK expressed their appreciation over the valued ties which Mauritius enjoys with the Westminster Abbey in our common wish for the collective good health and prosperity of the people within the Commonwealth family.
Minister Alan Ganoo participated in the Ministerial Working dinner hosted by Hon. Ian Borg, Minister for Foreign and European Affairs and Trade of Malta, during which he, amongst other things, called for concrete actions to address the challenges faced by small states and mobilise global attention and response to their unique inherent vulnerabilities.
Hon. Alan Ganoo also attended the CFAMM on 15 March 2023 which saw the participation of 29 Commonwealth Foreign Ministers.
Several participating delegations as well as the Commonwealth Secretary-General commended Mauritius in its capacity as host of the Commonwealth Climate Finance Access Hub (CCFAH), a Commonwealth flagship initiative for unlocking climate finance, and as Chair of the Hub’s Steering Committee. For his part, the hon. minister drew attention to the need for adopting holistic approaches for climate resilient development and sustainable growth.
As a testimony to our involvement with the Commonwealth, Mauritius hosted two important Commonwealth Meetings last year – the Steering Committee Meeting of the CCFAH and the Commonwealth Law Ministers Meeting. At the same time, Mauritius pursued its active engagements with the Commonwealth in various fields spanning human rights, blue economy, export promotion, climate change and youth and sports to leverage Commonwealth’s institutional, technical and human development support to bolster the country’s wide-ranging post COVID-19 economic recovery and resilience-building strategies.
The Commonwealth is a unique grouping of 56 developed and developing nations spread over every continent and ocean in the world.
