SADC Parliamentary Forum
The 47th Plenary Assembly Session of the SADC PF will commence with the convening of the Committee Session from 7th to 9th March 2020, in Johannesburg, South Africa. The Session will focus on the Role of Parliament in land governance in the SADC Region.
The three Standing Committees, namely Human and Social Development and Special Programmes (HSDSP), Gender Equality Women Advancement and Youth Development (GEWAYD) and Regional Women Parliamentary Caucus (RWPC), Standing Committees will individually and jointly deal with this important topic from the perspective of the mandate of their respective Committees. The three Standing Committees will also deliberate on various thematic issues of regional interest and concern that fall under their respective mandates in terms of the Constitution and the Rules of Procedure.
02-04-2020
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MAPUTO- The Speaker of the National Assembly of Mozambique, Hon. Veronica Nataniel Macamo Dlhovo and Senator Isaac Mmemo Magagula from the National Assembly of Eswatini were elected unopposed as President and Vice President of the SADC PF respectively earlier this month.
The two lawmakers were elected at the end of the 44th Plenary Assembly Session of the SADC PF which the National Assembly of Mozambique hosted. They will serve the Forum for two years having taken over from the Speaker of the National Assembly of Angola, Hon Fernando da Piedade Dias Dos Santos and Senator Monica Mutsvangwa of Zimbabwe who served as President and Vice President of the Forum from 2016 to 2018.
The Vice President of the SADC Parliamentary Forum, Senator Monica Mutsvangwa left the leadership of the Forum last week after an eventful two years at helm of the inter-parliamentary body that brings together 14 SADC national parliaments.
In a case of history repeating itself and in an emotional farewell speech at the end of the 44th Plenary Assembly Session of SADC PF that took place here, Mutsvangwa bade farewell to the regional body that she served in various capacities for many years.
"I cannot help but feel an oppressive sense of déjà vu … The memories of July 2012 remain etched on my mind as I came here for the 31st Plenary Assembly to bid goodbye and surrender my post as Treasurer of the SADC Parliamentary Forum ... How time flies and yet how history always seems to recur!," she said.
SADC Model Law on Elections adopted
29 Dec 2018Staff Writer in Maputo, Mozambique
On what has been hailed as a great day and a milestone for the SADC Region, the Plenary Assembly Session of the SADC Parliamentary Forum last week adopted the first ever SADC Model Law on Election.
The Chairperson of the SADC PF's Standing Committee on Democratisation, Governance and Human Rights Hon Wavel Ramkalawan from Seychelles, moved for the adoption. He argued that the new Model Law is a "very relevant tool that would assist SADC Member States to incorporate provisions of the revised SADC Principles and Guidelines Governing Democratic Elections and other regional and international election instruments into national legislation and policy".
The Plenary complied and passed the soft law.
Staff Writer
The Member of Parliament for Berea 27 Constituency Honourable Motlatsi Maqulepo recently collaborated with a businessman who runs taxis in Maseru to donate shoes and sanitary towels to needy children.
Under this collaboration, the businessman, Mr. Mphethe Morakabi provided 69 pairs of shoes which Hon. Maqelepo distributed to needy children who attend Thuathe Primary School and Lancers Gap Primary School, which are located in Sehlabenga sa Thuathe.
Hon. Maquelepo took this opportunity to distribute sanitary towels to over 70 pupils who had already started having their menstrual periods. Before distributing the sanitary towels, the MP addressed the learners at the schools who included boys and encouraged them to accept menstruation as a normal part of any girl’s development.
He, however, noted that many school-going girls do not go to school when they are having their periods if they do not have proper sanitary towels for fear of embarrassment, should they accidentally soil their skirts.
Noting that in some cultures some people regard girls having their menstrual periods as a sign of sexual maturity and said this has had resulted in many children getting married before they were physically and mentally prepared for marriage.
WINDFALL – School learners receive shoes and sanitary towels from Hon. Motlatsi Maqelepo and businessman Mr. Mpethe Mokarabi.
He explained that girls who fall pregnant while they are still young were at a greater risk of experiencing pregnancy-related complications and said all over the world, many girls who fell pregnant when they are young die while giving birth. Additionally, Hon. Maqelepo explained that early pregnancy disturbs girls’ formal education, making it almost impossible for them to acquire a sound education that can enable them to land good-paying jobs.
The MP stressed the fact that education was the gateway to a good life and encouraged girls and boys to remain in school and to work hard.
Hon. Maqulepo discouraged boys not to attend initiation schools when they were still young and encouraged those who go through initiation schools to go back to school.
The lawmaker is a member of the Human and Social Development and Special Programmes of the SADC Parliamentary Forum. Under this programme, he has actively supported the implementation of a Sexual and Reproductive Health Rights (SRHR), HIV and AIDS Governance Project which the SADC PF has been implementing in seven SADC Member States including Lesotho, with funding from the Swedish Embassy based in Lusaka, Zambia.
The first phase of this Project, which began in 2014, ended in March 2018. It sought to build the capacity of female Members of Parliament in particular and that of National parliaments in general, to advocate for universal access to SRHR, HIV and AIDS services.
The recipients of the shoes and sanitary ware were carefully selected on the basis of their socio-economic status. Many of them are orphans and vulnerable children (OVCs).
Hon. Maqelepo thanked Mr Morakabi for partnering with him. He encouraged other business people and individuals to emulate the businessman in making a difference in the lives of boys and girls.
A lady teacher at Thuathe Primary School commended Hon. Maqelepo and said it was rare for male MPs to be so passionate about SRHR-related issues. She said the MP’s discussion with learners about menstrual health had gone a long way towards demystifying issues related to menstruation. Over the years there have been numerous reports of some girls dropping out of school after being ridiculed for soiling their skirts when they start menstruating without adequate preparation.
The SADC Parliamentary Forum (SADC PF) was established as an institution of the Southern African Development Community, in accordance with Article 9(2) of the SADC Treaty on 8th September 1997, by the SADC Summit of Heads of State and Government held in Blantyre, Malawi. The Summit’s main objective for establishing the Forum was to “constitute a Regional Parliamentary Framework for dialogue on issues of regional interest and concern”. Currently, the SADC Parliamentary Forum has a membership of Fifteen (15) parliaments representing over 3500 parliamentarians in the SADC region. These member parliaments are Angola, Botswana, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Eswatini, Lesotho, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Seychelles, Tanzania, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.
The Forum seeks to bring regional experiences to bear at the national level, to promote best practices in the role of parliaments in regional cooperation and integration as outlined in the SADC Treaty and the Forum Constitution. Its main aim is to provide a platform for parliaments and parliamentarians to promote and improve regional integration in the SADC region, through parliamentary involvement.
The objectives of the Forum address a wide range of issues, including but not limited to:
- Promotion of human rights, gender equality, good governance, democracy, and transparency;
- Promotion of peace, security, and stability;
- Hastening the pace of economic cooperation, development, and integration on the basis of equity and mutual benefits;
- Facilitating networking with other inter-parliamentary organizations;
- Promoting the participation of non-governmental organisations, business and intellectual communities in SADC activities;
- Familiarising the peoples of SADC with the aims and objectives of SADC; and
- Informing SADC of the popular views on development and issues affecting the region.
Guide to the SADC Parliamentary Forum
30 Oct 2018Since June 2014, the Forum has endorsed an “Operating like a Parliament” Strategy which heralds the operational paradigm of the Forum as it embarks on a progressively more ambitious phase of inter-Parliamentary integration. The transition from a deliberative body to a fully-fledged SADC Regional Parliament is a logical step in the Forum’s initiatives towards regional integration made over the years, through targeted interventions and resolutions at the level of the Plenary Assembly.
Despite progress made in different spheres, the fact remains that in 2018, the SADC Region continues to be affected by daunting challenges. Improvement of national responses to HIV and AIDS; greater access to affordable medicines and health services; the need to ensure free and liberal trade; improvement of gender equality; enhancement of the democratic systems of the SADC Region through fair elections or access to domestic minerals through mining; and food security, among others; all constitute matters of mutual interest that are confronted with challenges on multiple fronts. Moreover, the SADC Region is affected by the same factors weakening the international economic order and which impact on trade deficit, economic growth, public debt and unemployment rates in Member States.
The Model Laws developed under the auspices of the Forum further attest to the long-standing agility of the Forum in working towards the harmonisation and integration of laws in the region. Altogether, the role of the Forum in helping to enhance sustainable development in the region is undeniable. However, now more than ever, despite the achievements of the SADC PF to date, in its current form, it is clear that there is need for further action beyond its current mandate. Resolutions agreed to at the regional level are not binding on Member States. A SADC Regional Parliament would thus serve to promote good governance and augment the implementation of the decisions of the Executive through the engagement of lawmakers at Regional level on issues of common regional concern. In this regard there is need for a higher inter-Parliamentary body which can bring Member States closer together and engage them to enact laws and administer policies that are border-friendly allowing for political, social and economic integration whilst bearing in mind other common concerns which plague the region. While similar regional inter-Parliamentary systems already exist in Europe, the rest of Africa and other regions of the world, the SADC Region will not replicate but rather develop its Regional Parliament in its own context, given its unique specificities without usurping the sovereignty of Member States. Furthermore, the achievements of the Forum already lend credence to the fact that inter-Parliamentary cooperation can indeed act as a game-changer in ridding the region of its ominous challenges.
In accordance with inter-state economic modelling, the idea of a completely integrated economic bloc would be marked by the free movement of goods, services, capital and people. Fiscal and non-fiscal barriers to trade would be gradually eliminated thereby allowing free flow of goods across borders. The establishment of a SADC Free Trade Area would constitute a point of departure for future integration, followed by a Customs Union, then a Common Market, a Common Monetary Area and ultimately a Common Currency. Complete monetary integration would imply that there will be no restriction on capital flows across nations which would use a single currency denomination. Monetary policy, price stability, balance of payments and regional debt would be overseen by a central Bank for the region. The integrated regional zone would furthermore be visa-free, with liberalised airline connectivity and initiatives to jointly market the region as a single destination of choice.
1.3 The Forum’s Mandate
The SADC-PF is a Regional Inter-Parliamentary body comprising of National Parliaments of SADC Members States (except Madagascar). Currently, the SADC PF comprises 14 Member Parliaments, representing over 3,500 Parliamentarians. The Member Parliaments are; Angola, Botswana, DRC, Lesotho, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Seychelles, South Africa, Swaziland, Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
The SADC PF was established in 1996 and approved by the SADC Summit of Heads of State and Government on 8th September 1997, in Blantyre, Malawi. The Summit “approved the establishment of the SADC Parliamentary Forum as an institution of SADC, in accordance with Article 9(2) of the SADC Treaty”. The Summit further noted that the mandate of the Forum was “to constitute a Parliamentary Consultative Assembly, the ultimate goal being the establishment of a Regional Parliamentary Framework for dialogue on issues of regional interest and concern”.
There are five standing Committees aligned to SADC sectors that oversee program implementation. These Committees are the engine room for Parliamentary Business. Below are the five SADC-PF standing Committees;
- Gender Equality, Women advancement and Youth development;
- Trade Industry, Finance Development integration;
- Food, Agriculture and Natural Resources and Infrastructure;
- Democratisation Governance and Human Rights; and
- Human and Social Development and Special Programs.
The SADC PF’s mandate as enshrined in its Constitution is as follows:
- To promote respect for the rule of law, gender equality and equity, individual rights and freedoms, including the promotion and development of cooperation in the economic field in the SADC Region based on the principle of equity and mutual benefit;
- To promote peace, democracy, security and stability on the basis of collective responsibility and supporting the development of permanent conflict resolution mechanisms in the SADC Sub-Region and strengthening regional solidarity and building a sense of common destiny among the peoples of SADC; and
- To promote dialogue and cooperation among Member States on socio-economic development issues in order to enhance economic welfare.
1.3.1 Objectives of the Forum
- To strengthen the implementation capacity of SADC by involving Parliamentarians in the affairs of SADC;
- To advocate the harmonisation, ratification, domestication and implementation of SADC Protocols, treaties and other decisions at the national level
- To promote the principles of human rights, democracy, peace and security, regional integration, human and social development, economic governance and gender equality through collective responsibility within the SADC Region;
- To familiarise Parliamentarians of Member Parliaments with the objectives, priorities and decisions of SADC;
- To provide a parliamentary perspective on issues affecting SADC countries;
- To provide a Forum for discussion on matters of common interest to SADC; and
- To promote cooperation with other parliamentary organisations and other stakeholders.
1.3.2 Implementing the Mandate
The Forum already operates in accordance with a governance framework which is sanctioned by its Constitution and the Rules of Procedure of the SADC-PF. Under this governance structure, the Plenary Assembly is the main decision-making body of the Forum and the Executive Committee is the management body which feeds information to the Plenary Assembly. The other organs of the Forum, namely the Standing Committees and the Regional Women Parliamentary Caucus, also feed information to the Plenary Assembly on specific thematic themes. The Secretariat, headed by the Secretary-General, stands guided by the decisions of all other organs of the Forum and is overseen by the Executive Committee in its operations. All Forum staff fall under the administrative supervision of the Secretary-General.
Collaborations between inter-parliamentary systems and international organizations further create the snowball effect which lays the foundations for incorporation of the Model Law into domestic legislation of Member States in the SADC region and beyond. It is the momentum created through collaborations which propagates the sense of ownership of the Model Law as a guiding legislative instrument which should inform African norms. The international acclaim and general acceptance given to the Model Law will also encourage Member States to incorporate the provisions in the best of delays.