(Commonwealth)_ Twenty information technology professionals from nine Commonwealth states and territories just completed a comprehensive training programme aimed at enhancing the implementation of the Commonwealth debt management software across their regimes. The training, which was held between 16 and 20 June 2025 at the Commonwealth Secretariat headquarters in London, aimed to enhance technical capacity to ensure the efficient operation of the debt management platform, Commonwealth Meridian.
Officials were from central banks and ministries of finance of the British Virgin Islands, Eswatini, Ghana, Kenya, Maldives, Samoa, Seychelles, Solomon Islands, and Tanzania. All these countries use Commonwealth Meridian in a bid to improve public debt management with greater transparency, precision, and operational efficiency.
The five-day training program equipped IT professionals with hands-on expertise to install, configure, and maintain the Meridian system. The training program also offered teachings on integrating the software with national financial management systems and business continuity.
System security was one of the most important topics in the course. Students learnt best practices from the industry, including backup techniques for data, centralized logging, and automated notification. These are critical to maintaining system integrity and seamless delivery of service.
The hands-on nature of the training was valued. The majority of participants recognized that it not only enhanced their technical competency but also empowered them to assist the software fully once in their own institutions.
The increasing requirement for sound debt management in numerous Commonwealth nations highlights the necessity of such technical education. In the Solomon Islands, for instance, total government debt stood at SB$3.3 billion in 2024, which represents a 9 per cent increase from the previous year. This increase underscores the nation’s expanding dependence on borrowing to finance essential development programs in infrastructure, healthcare, education, and agriculture.
For this purpose, the movement toward more advanced debt management systems like Commonwealth Meridian is considered a core initiative toward achieving sustainable economic planning. The program provides governments with an end-to-end solution for managing the whole debt life cycle, from recording borrowing transactions to tracking repayments and reporting to stakeholders.
Meridian succeeds the old Commonwealth Secretariat Debt Recording and Management System (CS-DRMS) that existed since 1993. While CS-DRMS operated well for decades, Meridian has better functionality that suits modern financial governance requirements.
To further acquaint the participants with the application of the software, the training also included demonstrations on how debt management officers use Meridian in their day-to-day work. This includes inputs and validation of debt data, monitoring of loan performance, and creating in-depth analytics to inform policy and budget decisions.
The training was organized by the Secretariat’s Information and Communication Technology (ICT) section with the help of finance experts. Trainers emphasized the critical role well-trained personnel play in ensuring upper-level systems like Meridian yield value-for-money results for nations and citizens.
With the establishment of local competence, the Commonwealth Secretariat aims to empower the member states not only to manage their public debt better but also to take informed data-driven decisions that facilitate the attainment of sustainable development goals.
