Seychelles’ National Assembly joins world parliamentary body
The National Assembly of Seychelles has formally become a member of the International Parliamentary Union (IPU).
This occurred during the union’s 122nd general assembly held in Bangkok, Thailand from March 27 to April 1, 2010 following a resolution adopted by the governing council of the Inter- Parliamentary Union.
The National Assembly was represented by its Speaker, Dr Patrick Herminie, who hailed the accession of the National Assembly to that prestigious organisation as a “significant achievement for the National Assembly”.
Established in 1889, the Geneva-based IPU is the only international organisation that regroups parliaments of the world. Its main aims are to promote peace and cooperation among people and strengthen representative democracy.
With the accession of the National Assembly of Seychelles, the current membership of the IPU is now 152.
During the conference, delegates discussed the promotion of South-South and triangular cooperation with a view of accelerating the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals.
Parliamentarians further debated the role of legislators with regard to organised crimes, in particular drug trafficking, illegal arms sale, human trafficking and cross-border terrorism.
Other significant items discussed were the involvement of youth in the democratic process and the growing number of women parliamentarians being elected worldwide as well as the role of parliaments in fulfilling the Convention of the Rights of the Child.
Dr Herminie said that membership of the IPU will bring immense benefits to the National Assembly of Seychelles as an institution and by extension the country itself.
“Being the focal point for worldwide parliamentary dialogue, the IPU provides its members with the necessary scope for networking, capacity building and parliamentary exchanges which will benefit the members of the National Assembly as well as the staff of the secretariat,” he said.
Furthermore, the IPU will also provide the National Assembly of Seychelles with the platform and the additional leverage to raise concerns with global implications at high level discussion, and thus, effectively lobby support from the other members of the IPU, he added.