The Pacific Island nation of Samoa on Tuesday announced preparations were under way to host a 2024 Commonwealth summit – the first such event of King Charles III’s reign.
Representatives of the 56 mostly former British colonies met in Rwanda this year, just months before Queen Elizabeth II died in September.
During her 70-year-reign, the British monarch headed the organisation and became its most vocal champion.
With the future and mission of the organisation now the subject of speculation, Samoa said it was pressing ahead with plans for the 27th Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting two years from now.
“The decisions on the dates and venue for the Samoa (meeting)… will be finalised before the end of this year,” the Samoan government said after the first in a series of planning meetings.
King Charles’s participation has yet to be confirmed, but he has also been a vocal supporter of the voluntary association, which encompasses 2.5 billion people.
He has also visited 45 of the 56 Commonwealth nations and represented his mother at the 26th and most recent heads of government summit in Rwanda in June.
Republican movements are gaining ground in many of the Commonwealth realms and will likely be a feature of his reign.
