The Relevance of the Commonwealth of Nations In Today’s World

This paper traces the evolution of the Commonwealth of Nations as one of the oldest voluntary international organizations of the world. It further assesses the relevance of the organization in the light of recent developments which have affected both the primus inter pare – Great Britain and the other constituting members of the organization. The paper submits that, even though there exist some problems within the fold, the role played by members such as Britain, Canada and Nigeria in Africa justifies/balances the obvious reasons for its establishment. Evolution and Development of the Commonwealth In order to properly comprehend what is meant by the term ‘commonwealth ’ that is the association of nations which retain a close connection with the United Kingdom and whose heads of governments meet together frequently to discuss matters of common interest – we must go back to the beginning of the twentieth century when the United Kingdom was still an imperial power. However, unlike other international organizations with exact dates of establishment, the common wealth has no precise date for its inauguration or inception. As such, the term evolution has often been used to portray its metamorphosis till its foundation gained organizational prominence. Yet, it is pertinent to note that its historical foundation predates most other international organizations, including the Untied Nations which came into being only in 1945. Akinjide Osuntokun has noted that the evolution of the commonwealth could be put at 1867, when Canada attained dominion status from Great Britaini. However, Cyril Obi in his article – “Nigeria-Africa and the Commonwealth ” states thus, “in terms of evolution, the Commonwealth began with the introduction of sel