The Commonwealth Local Government Forum (CLGF) is a global local government organisation, bringing together local authorities, their national associations and the ministries responsible for local government in the member countries of the

Commonwealth A commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. The noun "commonwealth", meaning "public welfare, general good or advantage", dates from the 15th century. Originally a phrase (the common-wealth ...

. CLGF works with national and

local government Local government is a generic term for the lowest tiers of governance or public administration within a particular sovereign state. Local governments typically constitute a subdivision of a higher-level political or administrative unit, such a ...

s to support the development of democratic values and good local governance and is the associated organisation officially recognised by

Commonwealth Heads of Government The Commonwealth Heads of Government (CHOG) is the collective name for the government leaders of the nations with membership in the Commonwealth of Nations. They are invited to attend Commonwealth Heads of Government Meetings every two years, ...

as the representative body for local government in the Commonwealth. CLGF is unique in bringing together central, provincial and local spheres of government involved in local government policy and decision-making. CLGF members include local government associations, individual local authorities, ministries dealing with local government, and research and professional organisations who work with local government. Practitioner to practitioner support is at the core of CLGF's work across the Commonwealth and within the region, using CLGF's own members to support others both within and between regions. The '' Commonwealth Journal of Local Governance'' exist under the support of the Commonwealth Local Government Forum''.''

History

CLGF was founded in 1995 and its establishment was endorsed by Commonwealth Heads of Government at their meeting in New Zealand later that year. It has received further endorsement at subsequent

Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting The Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM; or) is a wiktionary:biennial, biennial summit meeting of the List of current heads of state and government, governmental leaders from all Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth nations. ...

s and in 2003 was given official recognition as an associated Commonwealth organisation of elected representatives. At the 2005 Commonwealth Local Government Conference held in Aberdeen, the members of CLGF endorsed the Aberdeen Agenda: Commonwealth principles for local democracy and good governance which we're endorsed later that year by the

held in Malta, and in 2013 incorporated in the Charter of the Commonwealth.

Partnerships

CLGF works closely with other

and

international organisations An international organization, also known as an intergovernmental organization or an international institution, is an organization that is established by a treaty or other type of instrument governed by international law and possesses its own leg ...

such as the

Commonwealth Secretariat The Commonwealth Secretariat is the main intergovernmental agency and central institution of the Commonwealth of Nations. It is responsible for facilitating co-operation between members; organising meetings, including the Commonwealth Heads of ...

, the

Commonwealth Foundation The Commonwealth Foundation (CF) is an intergovernmental organisation that was established by the list of Commonwealth heads of government, Commonwealth Heads of Government in 1966, a year after its sister organisation, the Commonwealth Secre ...

, the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association and the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...

, including UN-Habitat and the

United Nations Development Programme The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) is a United Nations agency tasked with helping countries eliminate poverty and achieve sustainable economic growth and human development. The UNDP emphasizes on developing local capacity towar ...

(

UNDP The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) is a United Nations agency tasked with helping countries eliminate poverty and achieve sustainable economic growth and human development. The UNDP emphasizes on developing local capacity towar ...

), to promote and support democratic local government in the Commonwealth and to ensure that local government is recognised as an important sphere of government in development. CLGF is a member of the Global Taskforce of Local and Regional Governments along with other global local government organisations including UCLG, UNACLA, ICLEI, IAFM, ATO, and C40 and is also a member of Cities Alliance. The ''Commonwealth Journal of Local Governance'' is written under the auspices of CLGF, edited by

Cardiff University Cardiff University () is a public research university in Cardiff, Wales. It was established in 1883 as the University College of South Wales and Monmouthshire and became a founding college of the University of Wales in 1893. It was renamed Unive ...

and published by the

University of Technology Sydney The University of Technology Sydney (UTS) is a public university, public research university located in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The university was founded in its current form in 1988, though its origins as a Institute of technology, ...

. It was first published in 2008''.''

Organisation

The CLGF secretariat is housed in the Commonwealth hub on Pall Mall, London and has regional offices in the Caribbean, West Africa, Southern Africa, South Asia and the Pacific, and country programme offices in Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe. The current Chair of CLGF is Cllr. Mpho Moruakgomo, President of BALA and Secretary-General is Dr Greg Munro, who took over from the founding Secretary-General Dr Carl Wright in 2016. CLGF patrons include former UNDP Administrator and New Zealand Prime Minister Rt Hon.

Helen Clark Helen Elizabeth Clark (born 26 February 1950) is a New Zealand politician who served as the 37th prime minister of New Zealand from 1999 to 2008 and was the administrator of the United Nations Development Programme from 2009 to 2017. She was ...

and Tuvaluan Prime Minister

Enele Sopoaga Enele Sosene Sopoaga Privy Council of the United Kingdom, PC (born 10 February 1956) is a Tuvaluan diplomat and politician who was Prime Minister of Tuvalu from 2013 to 2019. Sopoaga was elected to Parliament of Tuvalu, Parliament in the 2010 T ...

Commonwealth Local Government Conferences

CLGF organised pan-Commonwealth biennial conference bringing together is members and partners Four conferences were held 2011-17: In November 2017 in Valletta, Malta on the theme of
Fit for the future: resources and capacity for effective local government
. In Gaborone in June 2015 on the theme 'Local government 2030: achieving the vision' and CLGF general assembly endorsed th
Gaborone Declaration - Local Government 2030
2013 in Kampala. 2011 in Cardiff. The next conference is to be held in Kigali, Rwanda in late 2023.

References

External links

*
Aberdeen Agenda: Commonwealth principles for local democracy and good governance
{{Authority control Commonwealth Family International political organizations Municipal international relations International organisations based in London