Melanesian Spearhead Group Secretariat
Excelling together towards a progressive and prosperous Melanesia
MSG DG signs MOU with International IDEA office for Asia and the Pacific based in Canberra
Ambassador Yauvoli at the International IDEA office for Asia and the Pacific based in Canberra, Australia
26 February 2019
Ambassador Amena Yauvoli, the DG of the MSG today signed an MOU with the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (International IDEA) which is an inter-governmental organisation that supports sustainable democracy worldwide. IDEA International is headquarters in Stockholm, Sweden with offices in the Hague; Brussels and New York. Its regional offices are located in Chile; the Caribbean; Addis Abbas with the Pacific Office in Canberra, Australia. IDEA also has country offices with its first Pacific office based in Suva, Fiji.
“With our MSG Secretariat reforms and programs alignment to be in sync with our 2038 Prosperity for All Plan, it is anticipated that this strategic partnership with IDEA and similar organisations will be of immense benefit to the subregion, especially in crucial areas of our programming focus. This MOU seeks to formalise the collaboration between our two organisations which will allow us to draw from the expertise, resources and global outreach of International IDEA in the areas of democracy and sustainable development”, Ambassador Amena Yauvoli said.
Since 2017, the reforms undertaken by the Secretariat has resulted in the reprioritising of its work programs and the realignment of programs to better support its members’ development objectives, strategic priorities and the overall mandate of the Organisation as directed by the MSG leaders. These redefined MSG Secretariat programs are the Political and Security Affairs; Economic Development, Trade and Investment Program; Governance and Legal Affairs; Environment, Climate Change and Resource Management under the Sustainable Development program, and Culture, Arts, Sports and Social Issues.
“These programs are well suited to advance the MSG Secretariat’s commitments and we look forward to working with development partners, donors and key partners like the International IDEA to advance these priorities. A strong subregion will make for a stronger regionalism,” Ambassador Yauvoli emphasised.
The three key areas of IDEA’s work globally that the MSG Secretariat will be able to collaborate on and benefit from are;
a. Research, Analysis and Tools whereby IDEA produces informative and strategic publications in the form of Guides; Reports; GSOD in focus; Database and other resources such as free Computer Software that analyses risk in elections; Digital Parties Portal website for party finances etc;
b. Technical Assistance: Works with key government institutions both bilateral and multilaterally;
c. Convening Dialogues such as the inter-regional dialogue for democracy (IRDD) includes key political organisations such as the UN; EU; Council of Europe; ASEAN; PIFS etc;
The MoU seeks to establish a mutually cooperative relationship in promoting and developing democracy and democratic institutions in Melanesia, providing the fora for peer to peer exchanges, experiences sharing on the basis of mutual respect, and to cooperate in developing and strengthening political/democratic institutions and processes.
Ambassador Yauvoli signed this MOU at the International IDEA office for Asia and the Pacific based in Canberra, Australia.