EN

Press Release

WINDHOEK-NAMIBIA, Monday 27 September 2021 – The Southern African Development Community Parliamentary Forum (SADC-PF) will tomorrow, Tuesday 28 September 2021, hold a virtual meeting on social accountability and oversight in the implementation of SADC regional commitments in health and agriculture in Zimbabwe. 

The meeting, a collaboration of the SADC-PF and the Partnership for Social Accountability, is a first of five national dialogues aimed at assisting SADC-PF Members and national Parliamentarians to critically assess the implementation and monitoring of regional agreements in their countries. The other four countries who are still to benefit from this initiative which will give Parliamentarians an opportunity to reflect on possible parliamentary interventions are Malawi, Mozambique, Tanzania and Zambia. 

Details of the meeting are as follows: 

Date: Tuesday, 28th September 2021 

Time: 09:30 to 16:00 Harare/Pretoria Time. 

MEDIA ACCESS: Meetings of the SADC-PF are open to the media and journalists who are interested in covering them must register on the following link to be added to a SADC-PF Accredited Media WhatsApp group where information on events of the Forum are regularly shared with the media: 

https://chat.whatsapp.com/Kj519Su3Py04YY8PW1t1Xy 

Registration for the meeting can be accessed on the link below:

https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZAkc-yurjIrE9dBYNeXb9V6J5KEst5sdQK3 

The meeting will be broadcast live on DSTV Channel 408 and also streamed live on the SADC-PF social media platforms on the links below: 

ISSUED BY THE SOUTHERN AFRICAN DEVELOPMENT COMMUNITY PARLIAMENTARY FORUM 

Enquiries: Modise Kabeli +27 81 715 9969 or  ">

 

Documents

Director of Ceremonies; Mr Sheuneni Kurasha Thank you;

Her Royal Highness Princess Mihanta Ramanantsoa, Madagascar;

Professor Ezra Chitando, World Council of Churches, Southern Africa;

Distinguished religious and traditional leaders; Members of Senate and House of Chiefs

Ms Eva Jhala- Esteemed Legal Drafter; TWG Members here represented; Members of the Media;

Staff of SADC PF and National Parliaments;

It is a unique honour for me to welcome you all, on behalf of the SADC Parliamentary Forum, to this consultative meeting. I address you as a lay person in matters of theology and tradition, rather as an ordinary citizen of the region who is occupying the position of Secretary General. I consider it a rare privilege to address you my leaders and hope you will find it in your hearts to conciliate my views with yours should there be any discrepancy.

As you may be aware, this consultative meeting is being held in the margins of the development of the SADC Model Law on GBV which necessitated wide consultations with the appropriate stakeholders. Needless to say that the consultations would have been incomplete without the august participation of traditional and regional leaders. Being mindful of the crucial importance of faith leaders in the GBV discourse, it was thus imperative to engage you on the road to progressive norms such that your valued input is comprehensively garnered at this stage.

I. Why is the engagement with faith and leaders important?

Distinguished religious and traditional leaders,

The Forum is aware that your input as religious and traditional leaders is necessary to strengthen the social fabric of the SADC region. The SADC-PF has always promoted broad consultations on gender equality and sexual and reproductive health rights whereby there is ample room for consultation with religious and traditional leaders, and this has been the norm /since the inception of the Forum.

The SADC Model Law on GBV brings international best practices on GBV legislation to the shore of the SADC region, and the Model Law is specifically destined and customised for the SADC context.

In this regard, we are aware that Parliamentarians need to work in close tandem with religious and traditional leaders to ease the adaptation of the legal provisions to the local context.

II. The adaptations required to ease acceptance

I believe you will concur with me to find that the legal provisions concerning GBV are mostly in harmony with religious and traditional values. Where there are discrepancies, we will be open to discuss about them, and we indeed require your immense wisdom and on-the-field experience to rationalise provisions in view of the finalisation of the SADC Model Law.

During the presentations today on the SADC GBV Model Law, you will find that the mainstay of the Model Law consists of an unflinching compliance with human rights that are generally accepted internationally in global instruments as well as in the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights.

To cite but a few, the GBV Model Law is premised on the human right to physical integrity, the human right to health, the human right to life, and the protection of the individual from torture and inhuman and degrading treatment. We are all born in the image of God. We are all God’s children and equal in his eyes and from whence the idea of human rights comes. It follows in my view therefore that an injury to one is an injury to all.

In a spirit of Ubuntu, the Forum is mindful that shared religious and traditional values constitute the foundations of the notions of Pan-Africanism and the friendship, unity and solidarity that exists between Member States of the SADC, as well as from Member States of the African Union.

Religious and traditional beliefs, irrespective of the faith or religion, all point towards peace, justice, and freedom of the individual from torture and inhuman and degrading treatment. All religions and traditions of the SADC region want people to be safe and to feel safe whether at home or in the workplace. Besides, it is only when people feel safe about themselves that they can calmly and peacefully pursue their human right to freedom of religion and conscience. At the same time, the SADC Model Law on GBV is gender neutral, that is in simple terms, it covers both acts made by men on women, and women on men. The Model Law would apply without discrimination based on sex, race, religion, gender, or political opinion.

This is why we firmly believe that the SADC Model Law on GBV would also speak to the values preached by African religious and traditional leaders and there would be no difficulty for the acceptance and assimilation of the Model Law at national level.

III. Requesting help to do away with GBV taboos

Distinguished religious and traditional leaders, On this note, I would like to appeal to your leadership skills within your respective communities and religious groupings, to encourage adults as well as the youth to do away with the taboos that contribute to the promotion of GBV. For instance, within a marriage, whether it is a civil or traditional marriage, a spouse may not report GBV due to the fear of being stigmatised by society. The answer to this predicament is certainly not to silence the aggrieved spouse who is suffering atrocities, but instead to ensure that when GBV reports are made, there is an adequate level of confidentiality that allows authorities to take action without the matter being widely gossiped about and putting to discomfort or shame the parties involved.

There are indeed competing interests here in trying to preserve the sacrosanct relationship of marriage and at the same time, eradicating GBV in modern contemporary Africa.

In this respect, the Forum does not have all the answers to the questions that may arise, simply because, to make things work and to eradicate GBV, everybody has to play their part at the appropriate time. It is indeed impossible to forecast every scenario that may occur in the GBV context although a robust framework can be put in place through the Model Law.

This is why the role of religious and traditional leaders are so important since you are the implementers of positive change in society. You are the ones who are on the forefront to eliminate stigmas and work with authorities to make sure that the law is respected and the safety of individuals are ensured. You are also the ones who make public speeches to large groups of followers and they trust you and your wisdom. You wear multiple hats as preachers, peace keepers and also educators.

Educating individuals on GBV is as important as the implementation of the law itself since without education about the law and what it protects, the status quo will remain forever in society.

IV. About the Model Law as a regional instrument

Distinguished religious and traditional leaders, Before I end, I would like to say a few words about the Model Law on GBV as a regional instrument that awaits domestication in Member States.

While the Model Law provides for a benchmark that can influence the drafting styles of SADC national Parliaments as well as the content of national laws, there will be a measure of contextualisation and further adaptation that will occur at the national level when the GBV law, or amendments to the law, are enacted in Parliaments.

This is to therefore request religious and traditional leaders here today to keep an eye on GBV legislative reform at national level and to contribute abundantly to local reforms that are in line with the GBV Model Law.

While your wise input is required today, your guidance and contributions would be further required in consultations made at national level at the appropriate time. When such legislative opportunities will arise, SRHR Researchers based at national level within Parliaments will be in touch with you for further streamlining and contextualisation to befit the domestic realm.

Having made the above remarks, I wish to thank you again for your attendance today, and I wish you all a pleasant session.

Thank You.

Ms B.Sekgoma, Secretary General,

SADC Parliamentary Forum 23rd September 2021

**

Statement by the Secretary General During Stakeholder Consultations for the GBV Model Law – Religious and Traditional Leaders on 23rd September 2021

Dr. Sarah Thomsen,Lead Policy Specialist for Health and SRHR, SIDA;

Dr. Bannet Ndyanabangi, Regional DirectorUNFPA East and Southern Africa Regional Office;

Ms Eva Jhala,Legal Drafter

Dear Colleagues and distinguished participants, It is with immense pleasure and gratitude that I welcome you to this Consultation in my capacity as Secretary General of the SADC Parliamentary Forum. This consultation today is being held with partners and friends of the Forum which include Sweden, UN agencies as well as development partners that have directly or indirectly contributed to human and social development in the SADC region through GBV related programmes and initiatives.

I. Why is the engagement with UN agencies and Donors important?

Since the establishment of the Forum more than 2 decades ago, regional and international partners of the Forum have been on the forefront of shared initiatives which have aimed to infuse best practices to the SADC region. This forms part of the Forum's commitment to implement SRHR and governance interventions, a culture of human rights through inter-parliamentary cooperation, and in so doing it was imperative to implement the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948), and the International Covenant for Civil and Political Rights (1977), as well as the International Covenant for Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (1977). Certainly, similar legal norms have evolved at the regional level through the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights (1986) and its Protocol on the Rights of Women in Africa, to cite a few. Indeed, through the diverse initiatives of the Forum, the SADC-PF together with its Member Parliaments have over the years succeeded to progressively incorporate international norms and best practices found in the instruments mentioned into domestic law, and this with the close collaboration of its developmental partners.

Dear Colleagues, friends and Partners; In this respect, Model Laws have always constituted an avenue to propel international and regional norms into the legislative calendar of Member States. SADC Model Laws, as we know them, have found their way into domestic legal systems within SADC, as well as acted as useful benchmarks and guiding references for legal systems outside of SADC and across Africa. In addition, SADC Model Laws have influenced domestic laws and regional frameworks across continents. In this respect, the visibility of the Model Laws as well as the impetus for advocacy of same have been largely heightened by developmental partners of the Forum, including the UN agencies and donors. Through partners, the Model Laws have known a ripple effect across the SADC region and outside of SADC borders.

I seize this opportunity to express gratitude to ALL partners who have left no stone unturned to contribute to develop Model Laws, produce advocacy content for the engagement of MPs, or go further by inviting the Forum to disseminate the Model Laws during thematic international meetings.

II. The SADC Model Law on GBV

Turning to topic, we are yet again developing a SADC Model Law today - the SADC Model Law on GBV - and this consultative process would not have been complete without your input and engagement.

As you may be aware, this consultation forms part of a series of consultations with stakeholders on the GBV Model Law and this engagement today will further contribute to the alignment of the SADC Model Law on GBV with best international practices that have been witnessed by partners and donors within SADC and beyond. To be certain, the exercise of alignment has already been conducted since the early preparations of the SADC Model Law by benchmarking the provisions with international and regional legal instruments, and the meeting of today will mainly seek to reflect and brainstorm on how to carry the Model Law forward. In other words, as we finalise the SADC Model Law as a bespoke legal instrument that neutralises GBV in the region, there is a need to consider how UN agencies and partners can assist the Forum to make early gains on the Model Law once it is adopted.

III. Why is SADC-PF concerned and leading the process?

 

Before I proceed to the post Model Law agenda, I wish to give further context to partners about how the SADC Model Law intertwines with other regional policies, and this in order to demonstrate that investing into post Model Law initiatives will also help fructify other initiatives that aim to promote SRHR and gender equality.

The SADC Model Law on GBV is an initiative that sprang from the stem of the Forum's Strategic Plan (2019-2023) . Indeed, the Strategic Objectives of the Forum are geared towards promoting gender equality, implementing public health and Universal Health Coverage, as well as guiding the SADC region towards a culture of human rights within a democratic context. You will certainly concur with me that there can be no human and social development in an environment that is polluted by GBV. Universal health coverage as well as the promotion of Sexual and Reproductive Health Rights do not sit well with GBV to any degree, and the right to physical integrity of individuals is for its part completely abhorrent of GBV. From this angle, it was opined by the Forum's membership that the Model Law on GBV could be the sword that could effectively vanquish cross-cutting social ills, and leave the way open for SRHR, human rights and UHC to finally thrive.

Since Parliaments are the exclusive sovereign authorities that are empowered to legislate in SADC Member States, it thus stands to reason that all GBV policies need to be channelled through Parliament if such policies are to have any legal effect. The SADC Model Law on GBV was thus perceived as a legal remedy that would constitute the pinnacle of regional efforts towards eliminating GBV.

Eliminating GBV in the SADC region would thus assist the Forum to draw one step closer to the implementation of UHC and to build the foundations for the democratic drive to be accelerated and reinforced.

IV. How does the Model Law on GBV fit within other regional initiatives?

Since you as international and regional partners are also involved in other regional initiatives concerning GBV, it is felicitous for me to emphasize that the SADC Model Law on GBV is not a self-standing regional measure in the midst of other SADC initiatives. Indeed, the Model Law is in harmony with the broader SADC Regional Strategy and Framework of Action for Addressing GBV (2018 -2030), which many of you have indeed contributed to finalise. Whereas the SADC Regional Strategy for GBV calls for human rights compliant legislative provisions which outlaw all forms of GBV, the SADC Model Law on GBV can is an extrapolation of the Regional Strategy which aims to facilitate the establishment of enabling GBV legislative frameworks in Member States. The Model Law reiterates the gender-related objectives under the SADC Protocol on Gender and Development, Sustainable Development Goal 5 on gender equality, the Beijing Declaration, as well as Aspiration 6 of Africa Agenda 2063 on women and youth empowerment. The Model Law on GBV is thus poised to act as a catalytic accelerator for the GBV commitments taken by Member States under the various international covenants I mentioned earlier.

V. Is soft law important?

On this note, I wish to add that the efficacy of SADC Model Laws to facilitate domestication is undisputed. As partners operating at the regional level, it is no secret that we all struggle on the issue of domestication of treaties and norms. Since most Member States are dualist in nature, international law has to be domesticated by an Act of Parliament for it to have any binding effect at the national level. In this respect, the SADC Model Law on GBV too will need to be domesticated. However, the Forum has already planned ahead for the domestication process in tandem with its Oversight organ, the Regional Parliamentary Model Laws Oversight Committee (RPMLOC) which is mandated to monitor the domestication of Model Laws developed by the Forum.

Therefore, the adoption of the Model Law by the Plenary Assembly of the Forum will augur a new dawn for domestication of GBV norms.

VI. Why is stakeholder consultation with UN agencies and donors important: the Post Model Law Agenda

Dear colleagues and distinguished participants, Having spoken on the germane importance of the Model Law, I now wish to say a few words on the Post Model Law Agenda, in which the Forum will require your input and reflections. As you are all aware, the Model Law is not an end in itself but the beginning of a promising journey. If we want progress to be made, we must invest now for gains to be made later. We therefore require your input on how best the Forum can enhance its partnership framework and benefit from donor resources to advance the Model Law further through programmes and initiatives that ensure domestication and enforcement. Whether it is by the development of advocacy materials, media articles or sensitisation campaigns, the Model Law on GBV needs to be vulgarised within the SADC region. The Forum is in favour of innovation and is currently considering all forms of advocacy materials, including animated videos and comics, to fulfil the post Model Law agenda and ensure that GBV best practices infiltrates into domestic legal systems.

VII. The effect of the Forum's transformation

At the same time, I am pleased to inform UN agencies and donors today that the Forum's transformation into a SADC Parliament has been approved in principle by the 41st SADC Summit of Heads of States and Government on the 18th August 2021. This means basically that the Forum will ascend to a SADC Parliament within an estimated period of 2 years when the SADC Protocol Establishing the SADC Parliament has been ratified and adopted by Member States. The SADC Parliament will then become an institutional organ of the SADC under Article 9(1) of the SADC Treaty. This welcome development augurs well for the Model Laws of the Forum as the SADC Parliament will have further thrust to push for domestication in collaboration with its Member Parliaments. Partners present today are thus invited to reflect on how best they can contribute and participate in the Post Model Law development agenda, such that the momentum of the Model Law is not lost and culminates into tangible results against the backdrop of the transformation of the Forum.

I wish to end by saying that the Forum has always been an fervid enabler of participatory democracy, and today your contributions as participants is also a means for the Forum to promote participatory democracy at the regional and international level. Today, the world is a global village with technology binding us together, and in this global village, participatory democracy entails that the views of stakeholders at the regional and international level are as important as views garnered at the national level. This meeting is thus important because you are important to us as well-wishers of the Forum, and the safe custodians of democracy at the regional and international level.

On this cheerful note, I wish to thank you again for your attendance today, and I wish you all a pleasant session.

Thank You.

Ms B.Sekgoma, Secretary General, SADC Parliamentary Forum 21st September 2021

**

Statement by the Secretary General During Stakeholder Consultations for the GBV Model Law – Un Agencies and Donors, On 21st September 2021

Honourable Members and distinguished participants, Mr Stanley Nyamanhindi- Chief Executive Director of the SADC Lawyers Association;

Ms Eva Jhala our distinguished Draftsperson. Members of the Media;

Members of the TWG, here present;

Colleagues from SADC PF and National Parliaments

It is with immense pleasure that I greet you today at this validation meeting of the SADC Model Law on GBV with MPs of the Regional Women Parliamentary Caucus and other relevant Standing Committees of the Forum. Just a few days ago, we have wrapped up the stakeholder consultations, and the speed with which we have progressed to refine the Model law and finalise all draft provisions is commendable.

We have come a long way and have made commendable strides. Today marks yet another important milestone in the review and consultative process of the SADC Model Law on GBV as we are submitting the Model Law after consultations duly made to the consideration of the RWPC and other Standing Committees of the Forum. Accordingly, it is today that the Model Law will garner inter- parliamentary consideration and approval at the level of the Forum. After this intervention session, and several, the last step would then be to table the Model Law on GBV to the 50th Plenary Assembly Session of the SADC-PF.

Why is the consultation meeting with SADC PF MPs important?

I wish to highlight that today, this Session constitutes a crucial step because it is indeed the RWPC and other Standing Committees which initiated the thrust to develop a SADC Model Law on GBV. Over the years, the RWPC has been on the frontline to implement initiatives that aim to prevent discrimination on the basis of gender. The first-ever Women’s Parliament in Seychelles in 2017, the Gender Responsive Oversight Model (GROM), gender mainstreaming and gender-based budgeting, are all initiatives that emanate from the ardent efforts of the RWPC as well as other Committees such as the Gender Equality, Women Advancement and Youth Development Committee (GEWAYD), and the Human and Social Development and Special Programmes Committee (HSDSP).

Finally, with GBV becoming more and more prominent in the SADC region, it was a joint recommendation by the RWPC and other Standing Committees that gave rise to the need for the SADC Model Law on GBV.

We are therefore handing over to the organs of the Forum the technical work accomplished through wide consultations with GBV stakeholders at the regional level. The validation meeting of today represents the valuable steppingstone to the 50th Plenary Assembly.

In addition, I wish to draw to your attention that besides the recommendations of the RWPC and the Standing Committees of the Forum, the SADC Regional Strategy and Framework of Action for Addressing GBV (2018 -2030) also calls for the enactment of human rights compliant legislative provisions which outlaw all forms of GBV. The SADC Model Law on GBV has thus embodied this feature of the Regional Strategy and has reiterated the principles of the SADC Protocol on Gender and Development, Sustainable Development Goal 5 on gender equality, the Beijing Declaration, as well as Aspiration 6 of Africa Agenda 2063 on women and youth empowerment. Today, I am thus pleased to say that both regional and international efforts on GBV are on the same wavelength and pointing to the same direction.

The extent of consultations made

As a recap, I wish to point out that separate consultations were held with human rights commissioners, SADC lawyers, SADC jurists, SADC chief justices and judicial officers, as well as Chairpersons of Parliamentary Committees at national level, SADC Line Ministries and police representatives. You will note that the breadth and depth of the GBV consultations will be reflected where appropriate in the relevant legal provisions which have been worked out to mirror best international practices and to equally befit the SADC context.

In this regard, I wish to seize this opportunity to thank the relevant regional bodies, CSO’s and other stakeholders who have made this wide consultation possible, including the SADC Secretariat as an institutional partner within the SADC family, the Southern African Chief Justices’ Forum, the SADC lawyers Association, and the Southern African Regional Police Chiefs Cooperation Organisation, to cite but a few. We will be engaging with Regional Parliamentary bodies, the UN agencies, Donors, Magistrates, Legal aid Officials and Prosecutors, and closing Consultations on the 8th of October, 2021.

The GBV Model Law within a Bill of Rights Honourable Members and distinguished participants,

Most of you will aware that the SADC Model Law on GBV is not the first Model Law of the Forum. Indeed, the Standing Committees of the SADC-PF were part of the process leading to the SADC Model Law on HIV, the SADC Model Law on Child Marriage in 2016, and the SADC Model Law on Elections in 2018. These Model Laws constitute a regional SADC Bill of Rights and the Forum is now adding to, and consolidating,its Bill of Rights with the SADC Model Law on GBV being the pinnacle of GBV related initiatives.

I wish to emphasize that all the Model Laws adopted so far are based on similar principles of human rights and democratisation, and that the Model Laws speak to each other. In other words, the Model Laws reinforce one another and whilst each Model Law is based on its own thematic content, they should be read as a whole. The SADC Model Law on GBV is thus being brought forward against the backdrop of other Model Laws which have already proved their efficacy in domestication and incorporation at national level. The SADC Model Law on GBV is thus intended to tighten domestic legal provisions with respect to protection of the human right to health, the human right to physical integrity and the human right to life, all of which form part of the objective of the Forum to preserve a culture of respect for human rights in accordance with its Strategic Plan (2019- 2023). Since GBV is germane to infringements of a number of human rights, the SADC Model Law on GBV is thus sealing the cracks and pitfalls with respect to the deficiencies that affect both genders and expose them to GBV across the SADC region.

What next?

Honourable Members and Distinguished Participants,

I now wish to end by saying a few words on the way forward.

After the adoption of the SADC Model Law on GBV, the Forum will not stop here. Indeed, the adoption of the Model Law should be pictured as the beginning of a new process rather an end in itself. The Forum will continue to monitor the Model Law through the Regional Parliamentary Model Laws Oversight Committee, which as you are aware, consists of the Honourable Chairpersons of the RWPC and Standing Committees. While information on domestication continue to be gathered by the relevant Standing Committees in collaboration with national Parliaments, the progress on monitoring will be conducted at high-level by the Oversight Committee. I am pleased to share that a Scorecard has already been developed for 1 Model Law and other Scorecards will be developed, including for the Model Law on GBV. The provisions of the Model Law together with the momentum of the Oversight Committee are bound

to make a difference in domestication endeavours in the years to come. All along, the impetus for domestication must be maintained by Parliament and this validation meeting of today thus foreshadows the beginning of the domestication process.

Conclusion

Honourable Members and distinguished participants, With these words, I wish to invite you to engage freely and frankly with the legal drafter and facilitator for this validation meeting. Today, the Forum will be making history by validating the first GBV Model Law of its kind in the SADC region. As regional legislators, you will be making history by approving a Model law that can influence the lives of over 250 million inhabitants. May the SADC region continue to prosper under your parliamentary leadership!

On this cheerful note, I wish you all a pleasant session.

Thank You.

Ms B.Sekgoma, Secretary General,

SADC Parliamentary Forum 16th September 2021

**

Statement by the Secretary General for the GBV Model Law – Validation Meeting with Joint Sittings of the RWPC and Standing Committees, On 16th September 2021

Caros Colegas/parceiros,

É com imensa satisfação que emito a presente declaração aos distintos parlamentos membros do Fórum e parceiros na ocasião da celebração do Dia Internacional da Democracia neste 15 de Setembro de 2021.

Hoje celebramos a democracia, que é o fundamento que sustenta a existência dos parlamentos. O parlamentarismo e a democracia caminham de mãos dadas na via promissora rumo à paz mundial, unidade e estabilidade. Os direitos humanos e as liberdades fundamentais prosperam numa democracia e perecem na ausência desta. Além disso, é lugar-comum afirmar que os princípios democráticos são os pilares fundadores do estado de direito, do constitucionalismo e da igualdade.

Neste sentido, o Fórum aproveita esta oportunidade para saudar e prestar homenagem aos parlamentos membros da SADC que têm resistido com bravura ao teste desafiador do tempo e têm registado uma rica história da promoção dos princípios democráticos dentro do contexto da soberania parlamentar. Embora o ano passado e o corrente tenham sido difíceis para a democracia na região da SADC, os parlamentos aguentaram a adversidade e asseguraram também a necessária continuidade, que é quintessencial para legiferar, bem como continuar a pedir contas ao Executivo. O prestimoso trabalho realizado pelos parlamentos da SADC dentro dos seus respectivos quadros democráticos atenuou os efeitos devastadores da COVID-19 e permitiu que a região enveredasse por uma via de recuperação económica comprometida com o progresso.

De harmonia com o seu Plano Estratégico (2019-2023), o Fórum Parlamentar da SADC reitera o seu compromisso de promover a democracia através da cooperação interparlamentar e implementar a Lei Modelo da SADC sobre as Eleições, que é o traço característico da democracia representativa e a porta de entrada para a boa governação. Graças à manutenção da democracia, gravita sobre a África e o mundo uma nova alvorada de esperança e prosperidade.

Viva a Democracia e Longa Vida aos Parlamentos!

Muito atenciosamente

Sra. Boemo Sekgoma

Secretária-geral,

Fórum Parlamentar da SADC

15 de Setembro de 2021

Declaração da Secretária-Geral do FP-SADC Sobre O Dia Internacional da Democracia 15 de Setembro de 2021

Dear Colleagues/Partners, 

It is with immense pleasure that I release this statement to the Forum’s august Member Parliaments and partners in view of celebrating the International Day of Democracy on this 15th September 2021.

By Sakhile Mokoena (9 September 2021)

 

Parliamentarians belonging to the Southern African Development Community Parliamentary Forum (SADC-PF) have declared their support for the SADC Model Law on Gender-Based Violence (GBV), which seeks to guide member states in developing effective policies and legislation to tackle GBV.

The SADC-PF organised a virtual consultative meeting yesterday with chairpersons of committees from the parliaments of 15 countries in the region to deliberate on the model law. Ms Boemo Sekgoma, the SADC-PF Secretary General, said it “reiterates and echoes the gender-related objectives under the SADC Protocol on Gender and Development, Sustainable Development Goal 5 on gender equality, the Beijing Declaration, as well as Aspiration 6 of Africa Agenda 2063 on progressive women and youth empowerment.

“This consultation and the series of consultations made beforehand serve to indicate the inclusive process of finalisation of the model law. In this regard, I am confident that as for other model laws developed, the model law on GBV will also become a flagship legal instrument that would serve as a robust guiding benchmark on GBV-related norms for the SADC region and beyond.”

SADC PF Countries Support SADC Model Law on GBV

WINDHOEK-NAMIBIA, Wednesday 08 September 2021 – The Southern African Development Community Parliamentary Forum (SADC-PF) will tomorrow, Thursday 09 September 2021, hold a consultative meeting with Chairpersons of National Parliamentary Committees to discuss the draft SADC Model Law on Gender based Violence (GBV Model Law). 

The purpose of the meeting - with committees responsible for gender, children’s rights, legal affairs, the police and justice – is to familiarise the Chairpersons from the 15 SADC-PF Member Parliaments with the GBV Model Law and get their input on the draft. The objective of the GBV Model Law is to, amongst others, provide guidance on the scope and content of GBV provisions to be provided for in Nationals GBV laws and provide support to national laws during the implementation stage, especially where gaps still exist.

Details of the meeting are as follows: 

Date: Thursday, 9th September 2021 

Time: 10am to 15pm Harare/Pretoria Time. 

MEDIA ACCESS: Meetings of the SADC-PF are open to the media and journalists who are interested in covering them must register on the following link: 

https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZIvdOCrqj8tGtBJPzV2zz0I-LbkXbFxRBS6

The meeting will be live-streamed on the SADC-PF social media platforms on the links below and recorded for later broadcast on DSTV Channel 408: 

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sadcpf

Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/sadcpf

YouTube: https://youtube.com/channel/UCa0QZWjuXVxer_vm637pBmQ

ISSUED BY THE SOUTHERN AFRICAN DEVELOPMENT COMMUNITY PARLIAMENTARY FORUM 

Enquiries: Modise Kabeli +27 81 715 9969 or org" data-ep-ae6d5="media<smal"> [AT]

WINDHOEK, NAMÍBIA, Sexta-feira, 20 de Agosto de 2021 – O Fórum Parlamentar da Comunidade de Desenvolvimento da África Austral (FP-SADC) vai realizar um workshop consultivo em formato virtual na Segunda-feira, 23 de Agosto de 2021, sobre o papel do Parlamento no reforço da Gestão das Finanças Públicas (GFP).

A GFP é central na gestão dos recursos públicos limitados, com o objectivo de optimizar os resultados orçamentais, maximizar o bem-estar social e o impacto económico. A responsabilidade de prestar contas está a tornar-se cada vez mais numa questão de muita preocupação na maior parte dos países da SADC – em parte como resultado dos lapsos notáveis nos sistemas de GFP que têm sido demonstrados pelos relatórios financeiros auditados de muitos órgãos públicos, paraestatais e autoridades locais nos Estados membros da SADC.

O webinar tem como objectivo a compreensão do papel dos parlamentos nacionais em assegurar a responsabilidade financeira dos recursos públicos, sobretudo durante o período de uma crise ou pandemia e o asseguramento de uma plataforma para a troca de experiências específicas aos vários países em matéria de GFP, para efeitos de análise comparativa.

Os dados da sessão são os seguintes:

Data: 23 de Agosto de 2021

Horas: 09h30 a 16h30, Hora de Joanesburgo

Local: Plataforma Virtual Zoom

ACESSO AOS SUPORTES: As reuniões do FP-SADC são abertas aos órgãos da comunicação social, e os jornalistas interessados em fazer a cobertura das mesmas devem inscrever-se no seguinte link:

https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZIodeCvpzsiGNVQZyQTNhhMiPYkFT1pIpux

A reunião será transmitida em directo nas plataformas das redes sociais do FP-SADC nos links abaixo indicados e gravada para retransmissão em diferido no Canal 408 da DSTV:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sadcpf

Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/sadcpf

YouTube: https://youtube.com/channel/UCa0QZWjuXVxer_vm637pBmQ

EMITIDO PELO FÓRUM PARLAMENTAR DA COMUNIDADE DE  DESENVOLVIMENTO DA ÁFRICA AUSTRAL

Pedidos de esclarecimentos: Modise Kabeli +27 81 715 9969 ou org" data-ep-ae6d5="media<smal"> [AT] </" data-ep-b8c79="[DOT] </sm">sadc" data-ep-b8c79="pf

About Us

The Southern African Development Community Parliamentary Forum (SADC PF) was established in 1997 in accordance with Article 9 (2) of the SADC Treaty as an autonomous institution of SADC It is a regional inter-parliamentary body composed of Thirteen (14) parliaments representing over 3500 parliamentarians in the SADC region. Read More

Contact us

Address: ERF 578, Love Street off Robert Mugabe Avenue Windhoek, Namibia

Tel: (+264 61) 287 00 00

Email: