For immediate release, 12 November 2018

Over 40 Commonwealth Speakers and Members of Parliament have met in London, United Kingdom for the Executive Committee of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA) from 5 to 9 November 2018. Members of Parliament representing the nine regions of the CPA – Africa; Asia; Australia; British Islands & Mediterranean; Canada; Caribbean, Americas & Atlantic; India; Pacific; and South East Asia – attended the CPA Executive Committee, the governing body of the Association. The CPA meetings enable Commonwealth Parliamentarians to reach beyond their own Parliaments to contribute in a global setting to the development of best parliamentary practices and the most effective policies for parliamentary strengthening.
The Chairperson of the CPA Executive Committee, Hon. Emilia Monjowa Lifaka, MP, Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly of Cameroon said: “The CPA Executive Committee meetings are an essential aspect of the CPA’s governance and also an opportunity for the CPA’s Members to effect change within the organisation.”
A number of governance meetings took place including the Coordinating Committee; Performance and Review Subcommittee; Planning and Review Sub-Committee; and Finance Sub-Committee. The Chairperson of the Commonwealth Women Parliamentarians (CWP), Hon. Dr Dato’ Noraini Ahmed, MP (Malaysia) also held a teleconference of the CWP International Steering Committee during the meetings held in London.
The CPA Vice-President, Rt Hon. Rebecca Kadaga, MP, Speaker of the Parliament of Uganda; CPA Vice-Chairperson, Hon. Alexandra Mendès, MP (Canada Federal); the CPA Treasurer, Mrs Vicki Dunne, MLA, Deputy Speaker of the Legislative Assembly of the Australian Capital Territory; and the CPA Small Branches Chairperson, Hon. Anġelo Farrugia MP, Speaker of the House of Representatives, Malta also attended the meetings along with the CPA Secretary-General, Mr Akbar Khan and staff from the CPA Headquarters Secretariat. The CPA Executive Committee meetings were attended by the CPA Regional Secretaries and a separate meeting of the Regional Secretaries also took place.
The Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA) Executive Committee Members also heard a presentation by Jacques Chagnon, President of Assemblée Parlementaire de la Francophonie (APF) on the structure, constitutional arrangements and programmatic work of the APF. During the week of the CPA Executive Committee, an official launch was held for the updated CPA Recommended Benchmarks for Democratic Legislatures at UK Houses of Parliament attended by the CPA Chairperson and Members of the CPA Executive Committee.
The CPA Executive Committee meetings were held in the absence of an annual conference and General Assembly for the CPA in 2018. The next annual conference will be the 64th Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference (CPC) and General Assembly due to be held in Uganda in September 2019.
Following the CPA Executive Committee, the CPA Treasurer, Mrs Vicki Dunne, MLA (ACT) and Hon. Russell Wortley, MLC (South Australia) joined the CPA Secretary-General at a special Remembrance Assembly at Twickenham Prep School in south London to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the end of the First World War and the contribution of Commonwealth soldiers.

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