Speaker Mukabalisa Donatille
The Speaker of chamber of deputies in the Rwandan Parliament, Mukabalisa Donatille, is participating in the 27th Conference of Speakers & Presiding Officers of the Commonwealth(CSPOC2024) in Kampala, Uganda, from 03 to 06 January 2024.
CSPOC2024 brings together Speakers & Presiding Officers of the national parliaments of the independent sovereign states of the Commonwealth. The main theme of the CSPOC is to foster and encourage fairness on the part of speakers and presiding officers of the Commonwealth.
In his opening speech, Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni has advised Speakers and Presiding Officers of the Commonwealth to take advantage of population and common language to exploit the advancement of all partner states.
Museveni said the Commonwealth is among the positive practices veterans of the resistance against colonialism salvaged, which he said should be employed to widen prosperity among member states.
“When the dangerous illusions of empires were defeated, the elders of the countries decided not to throw away everything,” he said, adding that the English language is an example of the good things maintained, which could be helpful in easing trade among nations.
The Speaker of the Parliament of Uganda, Anita Among, in her remarks, welcomed the delegates, and said Commonwealth relations should be anchored on mutual respect.
Established in 1969, the CSPOC operates on a bi-annual basis, where Speakers and Presiding Officers of the national parliaments of the independent sovereign states of the Commonwealth converge to understand the various forms of parliamentary diplomacy.
The Conference is an independent group and has no formal affiliation with the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association, the Commonwealth Secretariat or the Commonwealth Heads of Government.
CSPOC operates on a two-year cycle, holding a conference of the full membership every two years, usually early in January, and a meeting of the Standing Committee at the same time the intervening year. (End)