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Strides in Parliamentary Democracy in 2014

Cameroon for the first time hosted a major international parliamentary conference grouping delegates from all over the world.


 In the first week of October, Yaounde was awash with delegates coming in from just every part of the world for the 60th conference of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association. It was the first time Cameroon, a member of the Commonwealth since 1995, was hosting such a conference and the successful hosting of that event has been widely acclaimed and Cameroon’s diplomatic image greatly buttressed.

The capital city hosted some 600 hundred delegates, many of whom were coming to Africa for the first time; so, understandably, some side-events were organized, apart from the intensive work sessions during the conference, for a better knowledge and understanding of Cameroon with visits to treasured tourist sites as Kribi, Limbe, Buea and a gorilla sanctuary in the outskirts of Yaounde. Somehow, Cameroonian tourism had received a boost from these “ambassadors of goodwill”.  Apart from this entertainment component - Commonwealth meetings are usually held in an informal and rather convivial setting - the law-makers also considered some important political issues in line with their mission and objectives. The Yaounde meeting produced some eventful outcomes. For example, it was in Yaounde that the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association elected its first-ever female Executive chairperson in Dr Shirin Chaudhurry, chairperson of the Bangladeshi Parliament. The Executive Committee chairperson is the top officer of the Association and also serves as spokesperson of the Association. Dr Chaudhurry whose term runs for three years replaced Sir Allan Haselhurst of the UK who was coming to the end of a three-year term. The 60th conference also elected Hon Sardar Ayaz Sadiq, Speaker of the National Assembly of Pakistan to replace Hon Cavaye Yeguie whose term as Chairman of the 60th session ended with the Yaounde meeting. Consequently, Pakistan will chair the Association for 2015 and chair the 61st session of the Association.

A most important moment during the eight-day meeting was the address by the President of the Republic, Paul Biya. When he addressed the delegates on October 6, he praised the organization for having chosen such a topical theme for their conference as “Repositioning the Commonwealth for the Post-2015 Development Agenda”. President Biya acknowledged the presence of too many obstacles in the realization of the Millennium Development Goals set by the UN in 2000 and advised the international community to learn lessons from the difficulties faced over the past 15 years. He advised all players, including the Commonwealth, to demonstrate stronger political will, greater generosity and more effective, more concrete and more active solidarity. Without this extra touch of the soul, President Biya noted, “development by the end of the new Agenda may remain a distant goal”.

Many are agreed that the 60th conference of the CPA gave Cameroon the opportunity to score some important marks on the international scene.

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