Annual Conferences and General Assemblies

The General Assembly is the supreme governing body of the Club of Madrid. It is composed of all the Members of the Club, i.e. all former Heads of State and Government, two representatives from each of the constituent foundation (FRIDE and GFNA) and the Secretary General ex officio. It meets at least once a year and is responsible for approving the reports, budgets, recruitments new members and the Club’s various activities and projects. A conference on a subject of interest of the Club of Madrid takes place around the General Assembly.  Between the General Assemblies the Board of Directors and its sub-committees exists the Secretary which act as the administrative interface with the General Assembly. 

X General Assembly, "Digital Technologies for 21st Century Democracy" and X Anniversary Gala Dinner. 7-9 November 2011, New York, USA.

The Club de Madrid reached a special milestone in 2011: ten years of building democracy that delivers. Over the last decade, our Members have shared their expertise and knowledge with leaders around the globe, strengthening upcoming democratic governments and thus making a definite, long-term improvement in the lives of thousands.

We celebrated this 10th anniversary in November 2011 with two flagship events in New York City:

• Our Annual Conference, “Digital Technologies for 21st Century Democracy”, and
• A  10th Anniversary Gala Dinner.

During the Conference, some of the world’s most experienced and inspirational political and business leaders, policy makers and scholars took an in-depth look at the opportunities and challenges posed by the increasingly complex relationships between governments, their citizens and communication technologies – particularly as we aim for greater liberties and democracies that deliver. We discussed how big data and networks are revolutionizing governance and democracy and outline a series of principles for the implementation of 21st century democracy.

At the 10th Anniversary Gala Dinner we presented our Democratic Leadership Award, which recognizes an individual’s firm commitment with the consolidation of democratic values, human rights, good governance, and the promotion of sustainable, socio-economic development through democratic means, to President Bill Clinton, also Member of the Club de Madrid.

Further information, pictures, videos, podcast and details can be found on www.clubmadrid.org/2011conference.

IX General Assembly and Special Open Session, 4-5 November, 2010, Representation of the European Commission in Spain (Madrid)– Under the theme "Reconstruction and Democratic Development: The Case of Haiti”, thirty former Heads of State and Government met with high level experts to discuss the challenges of the institutional reconstruction process of Haiti.

VIII General Assembly and Annual Conference, 12-13 November, 2009, Palacio de Congresos, Madrid – Under the theme "The Political Dimensions of the World Economic Crisis" over 100 former and current Heads of State and Government and economics and social affairs experts convened to discuss the challenges of the current crisis, challenges that are systemic and far from limited to financial institutions. The gathering was an unprecedented opportunity to rethink the entrenched ways in which leaders have been doing things and to promote reforms to achieve a more democratic model. 

VII General Assembly and Global Forum on Leadership for Shared Societies, 12-14 November, 2008, Rotterdam - The Forum was a subcomponent of the Club of Madrid’s Shared Societies Project, a two-year initiative designed in response to a call from leaders worldwide for options and action plans to address the challenge of coexistence that every society faces. IThe event was hosted by the Club of Madrid and the City of Rotterdam, with the support of the Comunidad de Madrid.

VI General Assembly and Annual Conference, 19-20 November, 2007, Instituto Cervantes, Madrid – Under the theme “Democratizing Energy: Geopolitics and Power”, Members and Advisors of the Club of Madrid joined high-level representatives of governments and intergovernmental organisations, the private sector and civil society from more than 20 countries to discuss current energy concerns. 

V General Assembly , 20-21 October 2006, Spanish Senate, Madrid – The Annual Conference, with the title "The Challenges of Energy and Democratic Leadership", brought together the political expertise and experience of CoM Members, with energy experts with the aim of formulating practical policy recommendations for governments, international organizations, energy-related industry and consumers.

International Summit on Democracy, Security and Terrorism, 8-11 March 2005, Madrid, Spain

IV General Assembly, 10-12 November 2005, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Prague – Under the title “Democracy in the Post Communist World: Unfinished Business. What has been learned and how can it be applied?” this conference studied the trajectories and contrasting outcomes of transitions to democracy in the former communist countries.              

III General Assembly, 12-13 November 2004, Parliament Building, Madrid –The Conference analysed the threats that increasingly besiege both emerging and consolidated democratic systems – “Democracies in danger: Diagnoses and Prescriptions”. Their internal and external causes were examined with a view to formulating concrete recommendations on mitigating and preventive methods. 

II General Assembly, 1-2 November 2003, Palace Hotel, Madrid – The theme of the conference was “The role of the International Monetary Fund and its Contribution to Democratic Governance” through the analysis of the cases of Brazil, Poland and Korea. There was a final round table discussion on the relations of the IMF with the G7 and other developed countries, and their influence on IMF policies and programs. 

 I General Assembly, 26 October 2002, Palace Hotel, Madrid – In the first General Assembly, Club of Madrid members declared their commitment to defend and consolidate democratic practices and institutions, to foster and support transitions to democracy, and to encourage those people for whom democracy remains a hope thought not yet a reality.  That commitment is still the lodestar for the work of the Club of Madrid.