KINGSTON, Jamaica — In furthering her campaign for the post of Commonwealth Secretary-General, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, Senator Kamina Johnson Smith, will engage with heads of state and government and foreign ministers of Commonwealth countries in Africa.

Johnson Smith, who departed Jamaica on Friday, will use the working visit to several capital cities in Africa — particularly Botswana, Ghana, Kenya, Lesotho, Nigeria, South Africa, Tanzania and Uganda — to share her vision of reimagining and re-energising support for the Commonwealth.

“In an increasingly challenging global environment, the Commonwealth must be visionary and responsive, recognising always the diversity of our membership, comprising states at various stages of development,” the foreign affairs minister said.

She committed to working with members to generate more strategically targeted action in response to the challenges faced by the group’s 2.5 billion citizens.

These challenges, she noted, range from “expediting the pace of recovery from the pandemic, to effective action on climate finance and resilience, to supporting each other in times of crisis”.

The candidate also emphasised the importance of access to development financing and technical cooperation to promote business, trade and investment across the Commonwealth.

According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Johnson Smith also intends to raise the profile of critical development issues experienced across the Commonwealth including the vulnerabilities of small states.

The minister expressed her aspirations for Gender and Youth Empowerment, Governance and good offices within and by the Commonwealth, adding that she is committed to driving “more purposeful and visionary action to promote and protect the principles and values of the Commonwealth family”.

A decision on the appointment of a Secretary-General is to be made during the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Kigali, Rwanda from June 20-25, 2022.

Johnson Smith formally launched Jamaica’s candidature for Secretary General of the Commonwealth on April 21, 2022.

While Johnson Smith’s candidacy has been met with backlash by some member states, a significant number of Commonwealth governments are also reportedly against the reappointment of Secretary General Patricia Scotland for a second term of office whose tenure has been fraught with allegations of corruption and cronyism at the London headquarters of the organisation — which she has denied.

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