President Hage Geingob has urged Commonwealth nations to work together, embrace multilateralism, and promote dialogue as a method of preserving world peace and security.
Celebrating Commonwealth Day yesterday, Geingob said the values and principles of the Commonwealth Charter, to which Namibia continues to adhere, signal an important alignment of shared goals, which are prosperity, democracy and peace.
“I have always believed that conflict begins when diplomacy fails and therefore, as the world seeks to recover from the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic, we should hold hands, embrace multilateralism and champion dialogue as a means for ensuring global peace and security,” Geingob said.
This year’s celebrations, held under the theme ‘Delivering a Common Future’, will be historic, marking 70 years of the reign of Queen Elizabeth II and her role as Head of the Commonwealth.
The President also used the opportunity to congratulate Queen Elizabeth II on reaching the 70-year mark of her reign, calling it an admirable achievement. She is the Queen of the United Kingdom and 14 other Commonwealth realms. In February this year, the 95-year-old monarch reached 70 years on the throne.
Geingob said the theme is in line with the Namibian vision of sharing skills as we build together a common future within the Commonwealth in general and in Namibia in particular.
“As a nation, we recognise the importance of connectivity, innovation and transformation as key elements to deliver on Namibia’s future goals, in line with the objectives of the Commonwealth,” Geingob said.
He said precious lives have been lost and plans for socio-economic advancement have been interrupted.
Nevertheless, the head of state said, with enhanced vaccination efforts and strict Covid guidelines, Namibia has buttressed resilience and can begin to look forward with hope to a better future for humanity.
“It is important that our Commonwealth continues its tradition of connecting via platforms such as the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM), the latest which will take place in June 2022,” Geingob said.
The President wished nations of the Commonwealth peace, prosperity and harmony.
Meanwhile, Speaker of the National Assembly Peter Katjavivi and his deputy Loide Kasingo, chairperson of the National Council Lukas Muha and high commissioners of some of the 54 countries that make up the association, graced the occasion at parliament to observe the annual celebration yesterday.
The event included cultural performances and a display of the different traditional cuisines.
Commonwealth Day is an annual celebration observed by people all over the Commonwealth, including faith and civic gatherings, flag raising ceremonies and cultural events in Africa, Asia, the Caribbean and Americas, the Pacific and Europe.
ktjitemisa@nepc.com.na