1999 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting

16th Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting
Host country	South Africa
Dates	12–14 November 1999
Venue(s)	George
Cities	Durban
Participants	52 (of 54 members)
Heads of State or Government	47
Chair	Thabo Mbeki (President)
Follows	1997
Precedes	2002
Key points
Chairperson-in-Office Commonwealth's future Globalisation Pakistan Secretary-General

The 1999 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting was the 16th Meeting of the Heads of Government of the Commonwealth of Nations. It was held in Durban, South Africa, between 12 November and 14 November 1999, and hosted by President Thabo Mbeki.

Durban was the largest and best-attended CHOGM ever held.^[1] All fifty-two eligible countries sent delegations (Pakistan, which was suspended, and Tuvalu, a special member, were not invited), forty-seven of whom sent their head of state or head of government (Malaysia, the Maldives, New Zealand, Saint Lucia, and Sri Lanka being the ones represented by lesser government ministers).^[1] Despite the size of the CHOGM, it was the shortest held, due to the diffusion of powers to other organs that met separately, and had a markedly lower profile than other CHOGMs.^[1]

The role of the Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group (CMAG) was questioned, in the light of the previous month's military coup in Pakistan, which necessitated Pakistan's suspension from the Commonwealth (hence its non-attendance).^[1] However, the competences of CMAG were unchanged by the CHOGM, and its remit was renewed for another two years. Pakistan itself was also not subject to any head of government ministerial action, and decision was postponed until a later date, once the fall-out from the coup could finally be assessed.^[1]