President Paul Kagame is committed to ensure that all Commonwealth countries grow together and tap into the enormous opportunities that the bloc offers. 

He said this as he took over as chair-in-office of the bloc that saw two new members admitted, making it 56 countries. 

Kagame will head the bloc for two years and he outlined his priorities during a press briefing held at the end of the 26th Commonwealth Heads of Governments Meeting (CHOGM) that took place in Kigali.

"As Chair-In-Office, we look forward to working towards strengthening the partnerships within the commonwealth, for the benefits of all our citizens…each country in the Commonwealth has specific challenges and all together have common challenges but it's not about the challenges alone, we have more opportunities. Members will continue working together to benefit from the opportunities we share and those we can find in each other,” said President Kagame.

The Commonwealth has members from Africa, Asia, the Americas, Europe and the Pacific. 

Among these include Gabon and Togo whose admission was approved during the Kigali meeting. 

On what he envisages as challenges ahead in running such a vast bloc, President Kagame said that there are actually more opportunities to tap into collectively.

"It’s always going to be how much we pull along each other, how much we work together and we can do it in a way that, even together, we can keep measuring the progress we are making, it has to be about doing thing. This is what I feel that is at hand,” he said.

Gabon and Togo

Gabon and Togo have joined the Commonwealth as announced by president Kagame and they become the latest nations with no historic ties to Britain to enter the English-speaking club

Rwanda was the last country to join the Commonwealth, in 2009.

On welcoming the two countries, Commonwealth Secretary-General Patricia Scotland said; "The Commonwealth, which began as eight nations in 1949, is growing to 56.

Our continued growth, beyond the scope of our history, reflects the advantages of Commonwealth membership and the strength of our association. I am thrilled to see these vibrant countries join the Commonwealth family and dedicate themselves to the values and aspiration of our Charter.”

Gabon is a sparsely populated country of two million people, bordering Cameroon - also a member of the Commonwealth - and Equatorial Guinea, and the Republic of Congo.

Togo is bordered by Ghana – a Commonwealth member - and Benin and Burkina Faso. It has a population of approximately 7.8 million people.

At the official opening of CHOGM, Charles The Prince of Wales, who represented Queen Elizabeth hinted on allowing more countries to join the club calling it a free association of independent, self-governing nations,

The just-concluded CHOGM was the 6th to be held in Africa and drew over 5000 delegates. During the meeting Heads of Government reappointed Scotland to finalize her mandate in office.

The next CHOGM will be held in Samoa in 2024 and a new secretary general will be elected them.