The Speaker of the National Assembly of Zambia, (NAZ), the Rt Hon. Dr Patrick Matibini, SC, MP, thanked corporating partners for collaborating with the National Assembly of Zambia to co-sponsor some of the events and activities that will be held during the 134th Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) Assembly, and other related meetings which Zambia will be hosting from the 19th – 23rd March, 2016, at Mulungushi International Conference Centre (MICC) in Lusaka. This particular event is being held under the theme, “Rejuvenating Democracy: Giving Voice to the Youth”. He said this on Tuesday, 2nd February, 2016, at the breakfast meeting and official launch of the corporate partnership between the National Assembly of Zambia and the corporate world held at Inter-continental hotel, Lusaka, where the National Assembly raised K1.1 million.
The Rt Hon. Speaker further said that this year, Zambia will join a very short list of African countries that have held the IPU Assembly in the past, after Kenya, South Africa and Uganda. He said that the Assembly is expected to attract about 1,400 invited delegates and an estimated 600 accompanying persons, who will include members of the international media, special assistants, tourists and investors. He stated that it was therefore, important that Zambia show cases herself in order to attract investment and fortify itself as a tourist destination.  
The Hon. Speaker noted that the hosting of an event of such magnitude came with heavy costs and it was for this reason that the 134th IPU Secretariat at the National Assembly of Zambia decided to approach corporating partners to invite them to collaborate with the National Assembly in order to ensure a successful hosting of the 134th IPU Assembly.
The Clerk of National Assembly of Zambia, Mrs Doris Katai K Mwinga, who was also in attendance noted that hosting of events as big as the 134th IPU Assembly had its own challenges, and those could be better addressed when institutions aligned their interests and pulled their varied resources, including know-how, networks and brands to work together to achieve common goals. In addition, she said partnerships promoted a common purpose and strong ethics.
The corporating partners that participated in the breakfast meeting included; Airtel Zambia Limited, Southern Cross Motors Limited, Zambia National Commercial Bank Limited (Zanaco), United Bank of Africa (UBA), First National Bank (FNB), Madison General Limited, Pepsi, Trade Kings Limited, Stanbic Bank Zambia Limited, Pro-Flight Zambia Limited, Natural Valley Limited (Manzi), and Bank ABC.
In conclusion, the Rt Hon Speaker thanked the business houses that were present at the meeting for partnering with the National Assembly of Zambia and urged the corporating partners to use the opportunity to explore business opportunities with the delegates.