The East African Legislative Assembly (EALA) is calling for enhanced collaboration and co-operation between sister regional parliaments in Africa in a bid to strengthen the economic blocs in the continent, EALA Speaker, Honorable Abdirahin H. Abdi has said.
The Rt. Honorable Abdi noted the essence for closer ties when he received the Southern African Development Community Parliamentary Forum (SADC-PF) Secretary General, Dr. Esau Chiviya in Arusha this morning.
“Today, EALA enjoys warm and cordial ties with a number of parliamentary institutions. We are happy to receive you - SADC-PF as well, as we begin the new venture which should also contribute towards strengthening the Pan-African Parliament,” Hon Abdi observed.
The SADC-PF Secretary General is in the region on a three day study tour of EALA to learn of the mandate and operations of the EAC parliament and to explore possible areas of best practices that the SADC-PF can borrow from. He is accompanied by the SADC-PF Finance Officer, Mr. Mahendrasing Khooblall.
The Rt. Hon Abdi stated that EALA had made significant contributions in its ten years of existence towards the attainment of the objectives of the EAC. He said EALA’s fundamental role revolved around legislation, providing oversight and a representative function to the EAC. At the moment, besides the European Union (EU) Parliament, EALA is the only other regional parliament that has legislative powers.
Present at the meeting were EALA Members, Hon Dora Byamukama, Hon Dan Wandera Ogalo, Hon Abdullah Mwinyi and the Clerk of the Assembly, Mr. Kenneth Madete.
The meeting observed that regional parliaments need to tighten their collaborative efforts with national parliaments to enhance legislative services for the betterment of the constituents and the citizens they serve.
The Speaker also received salutations from the Chairperson of the SADC-PF and the Honorable Speaker of the Parliament of Zimbabwe, the Rt. Honorable Lovemore Moyo. In his brief message delivered to EALA by Dr. Chiviya, the Chairperson lauded EALA for its vast contributions to the regional integration dispensation and pledged that SADC-PF was both willing to closely work with and learn from EALA.
The three-day tour shall see the officials also hold talks with the respective EAC Deputy Secretaries General in charge of Productive and Social Sectors (PSS), Planning and Infrastructure (P&I) and Finance and Administration (F&I) and other high ranking officials of the EAC.
The SADC-PF is in the process of transforming itself from a consultative body in to a fully-fledged regional Parliament. The officials thus hope to report back the findings of the tour at the next SADC-PF plenary session scheduled for Angola in June 2011.
For more information contact:
Bobi Odiko
Senior Public Relations Officer
East African Legislative Assembly
AICC Building, Ngorongoro Wing, 2nd Floor
P.O. Box 1096 Arusha, Tanzania
Tel: +255-27-2508240
Fax: +255-27-2503103
Cell: +255-787-870945
+254-733-718036
Email: BOdiko@eachq.org
Web: https://www.eala.org
