COMMUNIQUE

27th PLENARY ASSEMBLY OF THE SADC PARLIAMENTARY FORUM
HELD AT ZAMBEZI SUN HOTEL
LIVINGSTONE, ZAMBIA
27th MAY to 5th JUNE 2010

1. The 27th Plenary Assembly of the SADC Parliamentary Forum was held from 27th May to 5th June 2010 in Livingstone, the tourist capital Zambia. This was the second time that the Parliament of Zambia has hosted the Plenary Assembly, with the 14th Plenary having been held in the same city in 2003.

2. The Plenary was held under the theme Towards Facilitation of Free Movement of Persons in SADC. Through its Standing Committees, the Plenary deliberated

and resolved on important issues such as (i) Benchmarks for Democratic Legislatures, (ii) the United Nations Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) (iii) Reform of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU), (iv) the Pan African Parliament and Regional Parliamentary Institutions, and (v) Trafficking of Women and Children. An update on the status of Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs) was given by a representative of the SADC Secretariat and the SADC Parliamentary Forum wishes to express its gratitude for this gesture of good cooperation.

3. Ten (10) Presiding Officers and forty-six (46) Members of Parliament from twelve (12) Member Parliaments viz. Angola, Botswana, Democratic Republic of Congo, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Swaziland, Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe, attended. Apologies from the Parliaments of Mauritius and Seychelles were duly noted. In attendance were Hon. Joram Gumbo, MP, the Fourth Vice President of the Pan African Parliament (PAP) and Hon Elizabeth Chitika Molobeka, MP, the Chairperson of the SADC Regional Caucus at the PAP.

4. The Plenary was officially opened by His Honour George Kunda, MP, SC, the Vice President of the Republic Zambia on behalf of His Excellency Rupiah B. Banda, the President of the Republic of Zambia on Monday, 31st May 2010. In his keynote address, the Vice President reiterated the call by the late President Levy Mwanawasa of Zambia and recently by His Excellency Robert Mugabe, President of the Republic of Zimbabwe, who expressed unequivocal support for the establishment of a SADC Regional Parliament. His Honour the Vice President welcomed the theme of the Plenary and emphasized the importance of free movement of persons and goods across the region as important for regional integration and particularly intra-regional trade.

5. His Royal Highness Honourable Prince Guduza Dlamini, MP, Speaker of the House of Assembly of the Kingdom of Swaziland and Chairperson of the SADC Parliamentary Forum thanked the Vice President for gracing the occasion and urged him to engage other SADC Heads of State and Government to seriously consider and approve the establishment of a SADC Regional Parliament at the 2010 Summit in Namibia in August. The Chairperson reiterated that a SADC Parliament would ensure greater benefits for the SADC citizenry through enhanced ratification, domestication and implementation of SADC Protocols and other decisions and instruments.

6. Host Speaker, Honourable Amusaa K. Mwanamwambwa, MP, welcomed delegates to Livingstone and expressed his Parliaments’ appreciation for the honour of hosting the 27th Plenary Assembly session. He also noted that Livingstone is home to one of the seven wonders of world, the Victoria Falls. He called upon Parliamentarians to continue supporting the fight against HIV/AIDS as the pandemic remains a poignant threat to citizens of the Region.

7. Hon. Regina Musokotwane, MP, the Chairperson of the Regional Womens Parliamentary Caucus (RWPC) welcomed the ongoing Constitutional review process in Zambia and called for the process to guarantee the rights and participation of women and girls in the development and leadership of the country. Welcoming the opportunity presented by the hosting of the 2010 FIFA Soccer World Cup by South Africa, the RWPC Chairperson warned against the potential upsurge in trafficking of women and girls during the event.

8. In the vote of thanks on behalf of delegates, the Speaker of the Parliament of Botswana, Hon. Dr. Margaret N. Nasha, MP, thanked the Guest of Honour, His Honour George Kunda, MP, SC, for accepting to officially open the 27th Plenary Assembly. Noting the apparent unequal gender representation at the Plenary Assembly, the Speaker expressed hope that one day, the situation would improve and the representation of women would be more obvious.

9. While applauding the adoption of the Protocol on the Facilitation of Free Movement of Persons in the SADC Region which was adopted by the Heads of State and Government in August 2005 but is yet to enter into force as only four countries have ratified. The Plenary called upon Parliaments to urge their Governments to move with speed to ratify this Protocol in order to strengthen socio-economic cooperation and regional integration, notwithstanding their fears regarding national security, spread of communicable diseases, cross-border crimes and influx of illegal migrants among others.

10. The Plenary welcomed the proposed reform of the Inter Parliamentary Union to make it more effective in executing its mandate as a global parliamentary body. Noting that the IPU President, Hon. Dr. Theo-Ben Gurirab, MP, the Speaker of the National Assembly of Namibia, is resident in the SADC Region, the SADC Parliamentary Forum further expressed its support in facilitating the IPU Presidency through providing the necessary human and financial resources.

11. Mindful of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and the targets set for 2015, the Plenary emphasised the need for Governments to scale up efforts towards the attainment of these goals and the need for Parliamentarians to increase oversight on this matter.

12. Having noted the current status of Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs) negotiations between the African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) states and the European Union (EU), the Plenary reiterated the need for Governments to consider the long term benefits for the people of the SADC Region and urged Parliaments to continue to play the oversight role on this issue.

13. In noting progress on the finalisation of the Benchmarks for Democratic Legislatures in the SADC Region, the Plenary welcomed this development as the outcome document will be an important point of reference on best practices for Parliaments in the Region.

14. The Plenary took note of the recent elections in Namibia in November 2009 and Mauritius in May 2010, that were judged to be free and fair by the SADC Parliamentary Forum Observer Missions. The Plenary Assembly congratulates these Member States for consolidation of democracy in their respective countries.

15. Having noted with concern, the current gender imbalance in Parliaments in which women are always in minority, posing a challenge to the pursuit and attainment of the 50/50 gender representation in politics and decision making positions in accordance with the SADC Protocol on Gender and Development, the 27th Plenary Assembly recommends that greater effort be put into the advocacy for the engendering of the structures and processes of political parties especially ahead of primary elections. The Plenary further urged countries that are still to do so to ratify the SADC Protocol on Gender and Development.

16. In recognising the important role that the youth plays in the affairs of SADC in respect of plural democracy and inclusive governance, the Plenary Assembly urged for the continued inclusion of the voice of the youth in the affairs of the SADC Region.

17. Cognisant of the impact of HIV/AIDS in the SADC Region, and the central political role that governance institutions, such as National Parliaments play in ensuring that financial and programmatic interventions are sustained over time, the Plenary underscored the need to take special measures in guaranteeing that national processes by Parliaments to HIV/AIDS, technical support by researchers and other capacity development programmes, are not compromised. The Plenary further appreciated the support received from the Swedish and Norwegian Governments towards the HIV/AIDS programme and reiterated the need for aggressive resource mobilisation in to ensure the consolidation of the gains made under the programme including the Model Law on HIV and AIDS.

18. The Plenary noted with keen interest the proposal to enhance and operationalize the collaboration and cooperation between the SADC Secretariat and the SADC Parliamentary Forum. The Forum encourages this initiative and generally the cooperation between and within the various regional organisations, in particular the Regional Economic Communities (RECs) in order to ensure greater benefits for the SADC citizenry through enhanced synergies.

19. Noting the Secretariats comprehensive proposed reforms and the accompanying new organogram, the Plenary resolved that the process of the new Strategic Plan for 2011 – 2015 be the basis for any such reforms.

20. The Plenary adopted the Constitutional amendment to include French as one of the official languages of the Forum.

21. Finally, the Plenary Assembly thanked the President, Government, Parliament and the people of Zambia for successfully organising and hosting the 27th Plenary Assembly session. In particular, profound appreciation was expressed for the warm hospitality extended to the delegates during their stay in Livingstone.

22. The date and venue of the 28th Plenary Assembly will be announced in due course.

Done at Livingstone, Zambia
3rd June 2010

Downloads

Communique 27th Plenary Final Livingstone(English)

Communique 27th Plenary Final Livingstone(French)

Communique 27th Plenary Final Livingstone(Portuguese)