The Commonwealth Secretariat delegation, led by the Assistant Secretary-General, Prof. Luis Franceschi, has confirmed that it will be visiting Harare, Zimbabwe, from Saturday 12 November until Thursday, 17 November 2022 and will meet all stakeholders,
In a statement released the to the media, the Commonwealth Secretariat said the delegation will meet President Emmerson Mnangagwa, opposition parties, NGOs and election watchdogs. Reads the statement:
Commonwealth Secretariat mission to visit Zimbabwe
11 November 2022
The Commonwealth Secretariat is today confirming that a delegation, led by the Assistant Secretary-General, Prof. Luis Franceschi, will be visiting Harare, Zimbabwe, from Saturday 12 November until Thursday, 17 November 2022.
The delegation’s visit is a part of the informal process of assessment regarding Zimbabwe’s request for re-admission into the Commonwealth.
The process of re-admission entails several rigorous steps that all countries wishing to join the Commonwealth must undertake and includes countries’ adherence to the values enshrined in the Commonwealth Charter.
The delegation is expected to meet with His Excellency the President of Zimbabwe, members of the government and senior officials, as well as members of opposition political parties, heads of diplomatic missions in Harare, and civil society organisations such as the Zimbabwe Electoral Support Network (ZESN) and the Zimbabwe Women Lawyers Association (ZWLA), alongside media and business associations.
An application to join the Commonwealth is not a time-bound process and is tailored to every applicant’s context.
The Commonwealth is a voluntary association of 56 independent and equal countries.
It is home to 2.5Â billion people and includes both advanced economies and developing countries. 32Â of our members are small states, including many island nations.
Our member governments have agreed to shared goals like development, democracy and peace. Our values and principles are expressed in the Commonwealth Charter.
Any country can join the modern Commonwealth. The last two countries to join the Commonwealth were Gabon and Togo in 2022.
