The Speaker of the National Assembly, Margaret Nasha, on Friday packed her briefcase for Port of Spain, in Trinidad and Tobago, to attend the 21st Conference of Speakers and Presiding Officers of the Commonwealth scheduled to begin (yesterday) Saturday as Botswana parliament attempts to move in tandem with international modern democratic ideals.
“The aim of the Conference is to facilitate dialogue and collaboration amongst Speakers of the Commonwealth Parliaments and to promote knowledge and understanding of parliamentary democracy in its various forms and also develop parliamentary institutions,” reads a statement from parliament.
Held biannually on a rotational basis and hosted by any of the 54 member parliaments making up the Commonwealth, the conferences are autonomous of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association and the Commonwealth Heads of Government.
Botswana hosted the conference in 2006.
Notable discussions will include Executive accountability, the Oversight Role of Parliament, Parliamentary Service and its Management, Strengthening the Independence of Parliament, Emerging new challenges for Speakers, Multiparty Chamber minority or coalition Government, and the Role of Parliamentary Diplomacy in the era of Globalisation – all of which deemed to benefit Nasha and her entourage particularly that the country is rapidly witnessing a wave of political changes as never seen before.
The conference runs from 7th -12th January.
Speaker Nasha and her entourage are expected back home on the 14th.
