Najib attends Commonwealth meeting in Perth

Prime Minister Najib Razak arrived in Perth, Australia late tonight to attend the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) and related meetings.

Upon arrival at the Perth International Airport, Najib and his wife Rosmah Mansor were greeted by Malaysian High Commissioner to Australia Salman Ahmad, his wife Tengku Karina Tuan Yusoff and Malaysian consul general in Perth, Hamidah Ashari.

Also present at the airport were Federal Minister for Tertiary Education, Skills, Jobs and Workplace Relations Senator Christopher Evans and State Minister for Police, Emergency Services and Road Safety Robert Frank Johnson.

During his stay here, Najib is expected to have a packed programme starting with, among others, bilateral meetings with Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard and Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa on Thursday.

On the same day, he will also deliver a keynote address entitled, ‘Building Infrastructure for the 21st Century’, at the Commonwealth Business Forum and witness the signing of a memorandum of understanding on ‘Standardisation’ between Malaysia and Uganda.

Meeting to be opened by Queen Elizabeth II

Najib is also due to chair the session on Business and Investment Opportunities in Malaysia and participate in the Australian prime minister’s roundtable with heads of government and business leaders on Thursday.

The rest of his stay here will be occupied with other bilateral meetings, executive sessions and retreat sessions while Rosmah will participate in programmes for spouses of the heads of government.

The prime minister will also host a barbeque gathering for Malaysians in Perth on Oct 30 before he leaves for home.

Najib is leading the Malaysian delegation for CHOGM, which includes Foreign Minister Anifah Aman and Minister of International Trade and Industry (Miti) Mustapa Mohamed, as well as officials from the Foreign Ministry, Miti, Finance Ministry and the Prime Minister’s Department.

CHOGM 2011 themed, ‘Building National Resilience, Building Global Resilience’, will be officially opened by Queen Elizabeth II, who is head of the Commonwealth, on Friday.

- Bernama