New system for financing the Commonwealth Secretariat

At the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) 2009 in Trinidad and Tobago, member states agreed to a new system for financing the Commonwealth Secretariat. As a result, the contributions of a number of countries will increase significantly, while financial relief will be given to those with the least capacity to pay.

The Scale of Contributions, which sets the contribution to be made by each member state to fund the Secretariat, was last changed more than 20 years ago, and had become seriously out of date. In future, the Scale will be regularly reviewed and assessed to take into account a country’s changing economic status.

Nine members will increase their contributions by 25 per cent or more, and one of these will see its contribution double. At the same time, those with the least capacity to pay will benefit from significant financial relief, with savings of between 37 per cent and 65 per cent.

Prior to the new agreement, all member countries contributed to the Secretariat according to a scale agreed back in 1989. In the two decades that followed, members’ relative capacity to pay had changed significantly: some Commonwealth countries had experienced strong economic growth, while others had not.

Under the new agreement, which will be phased in over a three-year period, beginning in the current financial year, the starting point for determining each country’s contribution is its relative capacity to pay. However, the new scale also has a number of elements, including a revised ceiling and floor, to reflect the other principles mandated by Heads of Government at the Kampala CHOGM in 2007: equitable burden sharing and shared ownership for the Secretariat.

And to ensure that the scale never again falls so far out of step with changes in member countries’ economic fortunes, it will henceforth be reviewed every five years.

In welcoming the agreement, Commonwealth Secretary-General Kamalesh Sharma paid particular tribute to the work of the Chair of the Working Group of Members that developed the agreement, the High Commissioner of Antigua and Barbuda to the United Kingdom, Dr Carl Roberts.

Mr Sharma said: “The Secretariat owes a huge debt of gratitude to Dr Roberts. His leadership, dedication and skill – coupled with strong support from the Secretariat – were instrumental in bringing about an agreement. In addition to all the work he put into the Working Group itself, and into numerous bilateral meetings behind the scenes to develop the agreement, the role he played at CHOGM, in skilfully navigating the proposal through the Foreign Ministers Meeting to the meeting of Heads of Government, was absolutely critical.”

The Secretary-General also noted that the willingness of the major contributors to pay more was a sign of the confidence which member countries have in the continuing relevance and importance of the Commonwealth.

Steve Cutts, who as Director of the Secretariat’s Strategic Planning and Evaluation Division provided technical support to the Working Party, noted that while the agreement does not increase the size of the Secretariat’s budget overall, there was reason to hope that some additional resources would flow into the organisation as a result. He explained that several countries, which will now be paying a lower rate under the new agreement, had indicated that they would pass on their savings to the Commonwealth Fund for Technical Co-operation or to the Commonwealth Youth Programme.

Secretariat Links:

• Funding
• Commonwealth Secretariat
• Commonwealth Fund for Technical Cooperation
• Commonwealth Youth Programme