Being a Council Member
The elections for BWF Council (2025 – 2029) will take place at the BWF AGM on Saturday 26 April 2025, in Xiamen, China.
The questions and answers on this page will help nominees to understand what is required to be a Council member – the role, the duties and the time commitment.
BWF is a membership organisation with 201 Members globally. Most of these Members are the national governing bodies for the sport of badminton.
The BWF Annual General Meeting (AGM) usually takes place in May each year. The AGM is the highest authority of the BWF. Every four years, the AGM elects a Council which is the governing board.
BWF has a professional staff of 52 and they work in the BWF office in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
– More information – governance structure and bodies
– More information – BWF office and management structure
There are a total of 30 members on Council and they serve a term of four years.
In the year after the Summer Olympic Games, there are elections for these positions on Council:
- President (1)
- Deputy President (1)
- Vice President Para Badminton (1)
- Ordinary Council members (20)
There are also two athlete representatives on Council.
- Athletes Commission Chair (1)
- Para Badminton Athletes’ Commission Chair (1)
The Athletes’ Commission (AC) and the Para Badminton Athletes Commission (PBAC) are elected by the two athlete populations (badminton athletes / Para badminton athletes). Each Commission (AC and PBAC) then elects a Chair of the Commission and these two chairs (of the AC and PBAC) automatically become an athletes’ representative on the BWF Council.
The remaining five members of the BWF Council (BWF Vice Presidents) are elected in the year before the Summer Olympic Games, by the AGMs of each of the five Continental Confederation AGMs.
- BWF Vice President Africa (1)
- BWF Vice President Asia (1)
- BWF Vice President Europe (1)
- BWF Vice President Oceania (1)
- BWF Vice President Pan America (1)
The Council is responsible for overall governance and strategic direction of the BWF, as well as the oversight of its management and corporate performance in accordance with the BWF’s Strategic Plan.
The Council shall carry out the duties listed in Clause 19.1 of the BWF Constitution (linked here).
As part of its supervisory role, the Council’s responsibilities shall include:
- Providing strategic direction relevant to the BWF Purposes and Objectives and deciding upon the BWF’s strategies and objectives to be implemented by the Secretariat and BWF partner organisations;
- Setting the strategy of the BWF, monitoring its strategic direction and the attainment of its strategies and objectives;
- Monitoring and providing guidance to the operational and financial position and performance of the BWF generally to ensure that the BWF Secretariat is working efficiently, with accountability and within the risk assessment profile defined by the Council;
- Approving the BWF’s budgets and business plans; and monitoring major capital expenditures, acquisitions and divestitures, and capital management generally;
- Ensuring that the BWF’s financial results are appropriately and accurately reported on in a timely manner in accordance with constitutional and regulatory requirements;
- Assuring that the BWF’s financial and other reporting mechanisms are designed to result in adequate, accurate and timely information being provided to the Council;
- Assuring a prudential and ethical base to the BWF’s conduct and activities having regard to the relevant interests of its stakeholders;
- Assuring the principal risks faced by the BWF are identified and overseeing that appropriate control and monitoring systems are in place to manage the impact of these risks;
- Reviewing and approving the BWF’s internal compliance and control systems and codes of conduct in order to adhere to applicable legal standards;
- Appointing and, where appropriate, removing the Secretary General through a HR Commission as per its Terms of Reference;
- Ensuring that the BWF’s affairs are conducted with transparency and accountability;
- Overseeing Member Association engagement, reporting and information flows.
Members of the Council and its Committees, Commissions and Working Groups must abide by the BWF Code of Ethics.
BWF Council members have the following specific duties and these also extend to their participation as members of the BWF Executive Board, Committees, Commissions and Working Groups:
- Be familiar with and abide to the BWF Statutes.
- Be familiar with the BWF governance and operational structure, the role of Council and other bodies within the organisational structure.
- Keep up to date with all the material provided to Council on which basis decisions are made at meetings.
- Ensure the confidential nature of material received.
- Prepare for Council meetings by reviewing minutes, proposals, background papers and reports to Council.
- Seek to become familiar with the opinions of Member Associations and other stakeholders on all matters of interest to world badminton.
- Attend Council meetings and contribute to discussions and decision-making.
- Contribute to the oversight of the performance against plans and budgets, and ensure directions and plans are aligned with the BWF Strategic Plan.
- Act with loyalty to the BWF and its purposes and objectives. Speak and vote on all matters only in the general interest of the BWF and the game of badminton.
- When attending BWF meetings, Council members shall not, under any circumstances, regard themselves or be regarded, as representing or acting on behalf of any other organisation.
- Declare any conflict of interest as defined in the Badminton Code of Ethics including registering a personal or close family member’s interest in areas that relate to the BWF’s or their Continental Confederation’s activities.
- Exercise and delegate only those powers which are defined in the BWF Statutes.
- Represent BWF at tournaments, conferences and international meetings as delegated by the BWF.
- Be accountable to BWF General Meetings for individual and collective decisions as defined in the applicable rules and terms of reference of the BWF Council.
- Ensure records, financial records and minutes of meetings are properly maintained.
- Act in ways that ensure BWF’s assets and operations are not exposed to undue risks through appropriate risk management.
One other duty of Council members relates to “Eligibility”, and that is the requirement to inform the Vetting Officer if there are any changes to their status that may affect their Eligibility to sit on Council.
Council members must be and remain “Eligible” in accordance with the BWF Vetting Rules (BWF Constitution, Appendix II – Clause 2.3).
There are no formal qualifications, experience or expertise to become a BWF Council member.
There are however “Eligibility” requirements and this is confirmed through a vetting process. Clause 17.2 of the BWF Constitution states: “To be a Candidate for election to the Council, and to remain on the Council, an individual must be Eligible” – see also the BWF Vetting Rules (BWF Constitution, Appendix II – and Clause 2.3 related to Eligibility Criteria).
– More information – About Vetting
Being a Council member will take quite a lot of your time. The main time commitment relates to these duties:
- Keeping up to date with material sent to Council (reports, proposals, minutes).
- Preparing for Council meetings – reading proposals, background papers and reports.
- Attending Council meetings and any Committee / Commissions meetings served on.
Meetings can be face-to-face or virtual (online).
A typical year has four Council meetings and generally follow this pattern.
March |
May | August |
November |
Virtual Meeting |
5 days 2 Council meetings 1 before / 1 after the BWF AGM |
2 – 3 days Virtual or face to face |
5 days Committee and Council meetings |
Other meetings can be called in between these Council meeting if the need arises.
BWF Council members are not paid. However, they can claim expenses incurred while travelling and on duty for BWF in accordance with the Federation Rules and Procedures (linked here).
This includes:
- Transport and accommodation to/from events where their presence is required;
- Daily allowance;
- Administrative-related expenses (phone & internet connection at home); and
- Other expenses, as required by function.
The Code of Conduct for Elected Officials (Clauses 4.1 to 4.10) provides an overview of the duties of Council members.
Clause 4.2 states that “Elected Officials must become familiar with and abide by the regulations and the terms of reference of the body they were elected to”.
Clause 4.2 also states that “Elected Officials must be familiar with the governance and operations of the body they represent, through attending meetings and reviewing the minutes of missed meetings and to keep up to date with all the material provided to the meetings on which basis decisions are made”.
These regulations of the BWF Statutes are the most relevant for Council members:
Guidelines for Council & Executive Board Procedures
Federation Rules and Procedures
Code of Conduct for Elected Officials