Publications

Governance: A handy handbook

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Our first publication of 2015 is made all the more exciting by the fact that it has been desk edited by me! I am positively brimming with pride.

Introducing Commonwealth Governance Handbook 2014/15

GG cover 2011

Commonwealth Governance Handbook 2014/15 is the comprehensive guide to public sector reform and innovation in the Commonwealth.

The Commonwealth Secretariat, through its Governance and Natural Resources, Rule of Law and Political programmes, promotes effective, efficient and equitable public governance in member countries – a range of work that bridges the defining Commonwealth pillars of democracy, development and diversity.

Commonwealth Governance Handbook brings together Secretariat perspectives with those of partners in government; professions,
development agencies and the private sector. This edition covers:

  • Deepening democracy: electoral finance and e-voting technologies
  • Constitutional change, leadership and human resources
  • Open data, cyber security and governance of the internet
  • Human security: civic/ethnic considerations, cross-border issues and land tenure
  • Performance management in public services and contracting
  • Utilities, environmental risk and the ‘blue economy’
  • The Commonwealth Association for Public Administration and Management (CAPAM) Innovation Awards

The publication also contains 53 governance profiles of member countries as well as progress on the Millennium Development Goals and other indicators.

For more information or to purchase a copy of the publication please visit our website.

World Book Night – Amazon freebie!

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In celebration of World Book Night I have teamed up with author N Caraway to offer you all the chance to read his novels for free on your kindles.

World Book Night is an annual celebration of reading and books that takes place in the UK on 23 April. Across the country volunteers give out hundreds of thousands pre-chosen books in their communities to share their love of reading with people who don’t own books or are unable to read regularly.

This years book list has some cracking reads on it – check out the World Book Night website for more information, and to locate participating venues.

And for those of your who can’t participate in any of tonight’s events head on over to Amazon, or Amazon UK, and grab yourself a free ebook to sink your teeth into instead.

Click on the book covers to get yourself a copy.

The Manneken Pis

maneA lonely old man is living out the last days of his life in Brussels, a city that alternates between small-town non-entity and extreme surrealist quirkiness, symbolised by the famous statue of a small boy urinating. Increasingly confused by the effects of a heart attack, he tries to find meaning in one last rational act of kindness before he dies.

Set in the capital of a rapidly ageing Europe, the second novel by N Caraway is a tragicomic study of solitude and growing old that also provides a surprising new take on the theme of the classic Frank Capra movie ‘It’s a Wonderful Life’.

The Humanitarian

51W+tDMNtgLAfter decades of civil war a peace deal is in the offing for the ravaged land of South Sudan, where the United Nations and a plethora of non-government organisations have come together to deliver emergency aid to the thousands of displaced and homeless people scattered in camps and villages across the vast wilderness of swamps and scrubland.

Richards is a UN official on his final mission, leading a small team to a remote region. For him it is not just the war which is ending, but the world he has come to inhabit. Detachment and isolation from all that is around him begin to take hold and memories of another life threaten to break through the thin walls he has built around himself. As he sinks deeper into inner darkness a chance meeting with a young priest seems to offer the hope of a way back to belief in humanity and meaning, but the road is rough.

Orange is the new black

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It’s been very busy in the office over the last few months, culminating in the much anticipated annual summer party and simultaneous release of our best known yearly publication. We’re in the process of working on a few other books and things are a little hectic at present, so please forgive me for keeping this post short and sweet!

Without further ado it gives me great pleasure to present to you our latest publication:

CYB14

Introducing The Commonwealth Yearbook 2014

The Commonwealth Yearbook 2014 is the flagship annual publication of the Commonwealth Secretariat. It is the essential reference guide to the countries, organisations, activities and values of the modern Commonwealth.

For more information or to purchase a copy of the publication please visit our website.

Hot off the press — Governance for Development 2014-15

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Our third publication of 2014 is back from the printers and ready for the launch at the UN Public Service Forum in Seoul next week.

G4D

Introducing Governance for Development 2014-15 

Specially published for the UN Public Service Forum 2014, Governance for Development 2014-15 features:

• Winners of the UN Public Service Awards 2014 – the most prestigious international recognition of public service professionalism and excellence
• Independent thought leadership pieces and case studies
• A unique reference section with information on each of the 193 UN member states

For information on the publication, or to purchase a copy check out our website.

Another job well done — Commonwealth Health Partnerships 2014

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I may have already mentioned how utterly manic the last few weeks have been…

Needless to say successfully managing several upcoming publications at once is no mean feat, but it does make holding the finished product all that more rewarding. For this reason it gives me great pleasure to present to you our latest publication:

ImageIntroducing Commonwealth Health Partnerships 2014 

Commonwealth Health Partnerships is the official annual Commonwealth reference source designed to ensure that ministers, policy-makers, officials and the development community can access analysis and thought leadership on:

  • Strengthening public health systems, and supporting healthcare delivery
  • Developments in priority aspects of healthcare such as  the treatment of heart disease & hypertension
  • Immunisation & public health education
  • Health workers – training, professional development, unions & migration
  • Key communicable & non-communicable diseases e.g. HIV/AIDS, malaria, tuberculosis, diabetes, cancer
  • In-country health structures & policies, including profiles of organisations committed to delivering public health in difficult circumstances.

Launched at the annual Commonwealth Health Ministers Meeting (CHMM), the publication provides a guide to current issues in global health for ministers, senior officials and other stakeholders.

The publication also includes extensive health profiles of the 53 Commonwealth member countries, incorporating up-to-date data on health systems and population health outcomes.

For information on our other publications, or to purchase a copy check out our website.

A [tiny] bit about the day job — Commonwealth Governance and Growth 2014

jadetheobscure Publications

As much as I love reading and writing reviews, it doesn’t pay the bills. On the plus side, I have an amazing job which does. Yes, when I’m not fighting crime, or reading all the lovely books you guys send me, I work in publishing. It’s hard work, but for me nothing tops the feeling I get when we receive the finished copy of one of our books.

So without further ado allow me to present to you our latest publication:

ImageIntroducing Commonwealth Governance and Growth 2014

Commonwealth Governance and Growth 2014 brings together various perspectives and experiences of public-private partnering for national development from experts at the Commonwealth Secretariat and also from senior officials and executives within government, industry, academia and the development community.

For information on our other publications, or to purchase a copy check out our website.