Following two weeks of Commonwealth sport and the handing of the baton to the next host of the Commonwealth Games, Birmingham, the UK will host the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in London and Windsor.
After 2009 this is the first time an Indian Prime Minister will be participating in CHOGM. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be in London from 18-20 April 2018. He was meant to be accompanied by Indian Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, but he has currently dropped out due to health related issues.
Events as they will happen
From Monday 16 April to Friday 20 April this biennial event will bring together Heads of Government, Foreign Ministers and thousands of delegates from across our 53 Commonwealth nations. With the theme of ‘Towards a Common Future’, the summit will focus on addressing common challenges across the Commonwealth and work to deliver a more prosperous, secure, sustainable and fairer future for the Commonwealth’s 2.4 billion citizens. Ahead of the formal Heads of Government Meeting on Thursday and Friday, the week will begin with three days of forums on Business, Women, People and Youth (Monday 16 to Wednesday 18 April). The Youth, Women’s and People’s Forum will take place at The Queen Elizabeth II Conference Centre in Westminster while the Business Forum will be held at Guildhall in the City of London.
The forums offer a unique platform for the people of the Commonwealth to come together to address shared challenges and help frame the discussions of leaders. Up to 2,000 representatives from business, civil society, youth-led organisations and government will meet to discuss and raise the issues of most importance to our citizens. For the first time, all four forums will come together under one roof on Tuesday 17 April at the QEII Centre. A number of high-profile speakers are expected to take part throughout the three days.
The UK will host a reception, curated by the GREAT Britain campaign, to showcase
the best of the UK’s export examples through music, sport and technology. This will include the Premier League trophy, the men and women’s Cricket World Cup trophies, food and drink sourced from across the whole of the UK. Alongside this, exhibits from the Commonwealth Fashion Exchange will be on display.
On Wednesday 18 April the UK Foreign Secretary will host Commonwealth Foreign Ministers as they undertake the preparatory work on the key themes for the Heads of Government meeting.
Thursday 19 April will mark the start of the Heads of Government programme. The Mall, Parliament Square and Windsor will be lined with the flags of the Commonwealth as Heads of Government, Foreign Ministers and guests gather in Buckingham Palace. Those travelling in and around the area can expect to see ceremonial elements, including a Commonwealth Guard of Honour and a 53 gun salute.
Following this, all Heads of Government will be welcomed by the UK Prime Minister, Theresa May, and Commonwealth Secretary-General, Patricia Scotland, before starting the Executive Sessions at Lancaster House. Working sessions, which will be chaired by the UK Prime Minister, will focus on the key priorities of the summit - prosperity, security, sustainability and fairness.
On Thursday evening, Her Majesty The Queen will host a dinner for leaders and their spouses at Buckingham Palace. The UK Foreign Secretary will also host a dinner for his counterparts.
In keeping with Commonwealth tradition on the final day of the summit, Heads of Government will gather at Windsor Castle for the Leaders’ Retreat. This is designed to allow frank dialogue. On the conclusion of the Retreat, a communique is published which sets the decisions and commitments that leaders have made.
Tentative itinerary for Modi visit
The PM will arrive in London from Sweden on April 17th night. On April 18th at 8.30am (BST) there will be a UK-India Bilateral talks at Number 10. Indian PM in expected to sign the memorandum agreeing that 100,000 illegal immigrants return to India from here.
Between 12-3pm, protests will be held against Modi. Pakistan origin British MP Lord Nazir is leading protests outside the parliament. To counter that, Indians from the diaspora plan to counter that in large numbers to support the PM.
From 5.30 to 7.30 pm, Modi will be meeting Indians living in the UK in an event called ‘Bharat Ki Baat, Modi ke saath’. A ballot has collected registrations from the NRI community across the UK and Europe and even the US. 1500 people will be selected to attend this meeting with Modi in Westminster probably at the Queen Elizabeth II Centre.
On other occasions he will be joining his counterparts as mentioned above.
Events celebrating the Commonwealth spirit
Alongside the summit, a number of other organisations have Commonwealth themed events taking place to highlight and celebrate the Commonwealth. These include:
● A special Commonwealth Evensong at Westminster Abbey (15 April at 3pm)
● Research Vessel Endeavour moored alongside HMS Belfast on the Thames (17 and 18 April), educating school children about the important work it is doing
to protect our oceans;
● Commonwealth-themed openings of the London Stock Exchange;
● Global Citizen concert at Brixton Academy featuring Emeli Sandé and
Professor Green (17 April);
● Malaria Summit aims to unite leaders of government, business and science
to take action to eliminate this disease (Wednesday 18 April);
● Birmingham will host a Commonwealth Games homecoming celebration (21
April)
Cultural events
In addition to this, many UK cultural institutions have Commonwealth-related events and exhibitions, including the Government Art Collection, Wallace Collection, Science Museum, British Museum, British Library, National Portrait Gallery, amongst others. These institutions are hosting tours, talks, lectures, musical performances and the first Commonwealth film festival.
Delivered in partnership with the Eden Project, these lunches encourage people across the Commonwealth to come together, share food and learn about the Commonwealth. Over 200 lunches will have taken place including: 30,000 students and staff at Kalinga Institute of Social Sciences in India, in an East London community centre, on board the RRS James Cook off the coast of South Africa, in schools across the Commonwealth, on beaches, in village halls and in places of worship. During the summit week, a Commonwealth Big Lunch will take place at the first joint forum day with the
2,000 attendees.
