The 9th Annual Conference of the Arab Association of Secretaries General of Parliaments (AASGP) kicked off in Cairo yesterday, under the chairmanship of Qatar, and represented by the Shura Council.
Addressing the conference, HE Secretary-General of the Shura Council and President of the Arab Association of Secretaries General of Parliaments Dr Ahmed bin Nasser al-Fadhala praised the role of Qatar and its continued and unlimited support for the efforts of the secretaries-general of the Arab parliaments.
He stressed the importance of holding the conference, which aims to exchange visions and organise efforts to develop the performance of the general secretariats of member parliaments, as stipulated by the AASGP bylaws.
He noted that the AASGP has since the launch of its first conference in Morocco, chosen a specific topic in each of its annual conferences, to discuss and exchange views and ideas on the subject, with the aim of developing performance in the general secretariats of member parliaments, and to meet the needs of those parliaments for joint studies. In accordance with this approach, the topic of the current conference - the terms of reference of the secretaries-general of the Arab parliaments - was chosen to be the subject of consideration and research.
HE Dr al-Fadhala explained that the importance of this topic stems from the belief and conviction in the pivotal role carried out by the secretaries-general in their legislative councils.
He looked forward to the two-day conference to achieve its objectives, by studying and discussing a number of important topics, and listening to the valuable interventions and proposals which enrich dialogue and which would lead to positive results that advance parliamentary work to broaden horizons and serve the interests of parliaments, countries and the Arab people.
Former secretaries-general were honoured during the conference.
Meanwhile, the 40th General Assembly was held as part of the conference activities. The Assembly approved the Arab Parliaments' accession to the Arab Association of Secretaries General of Parliaments, and reviewed the report of the executive committee meeting which was held in Bali in March. The report included several items, including the approval of the requests for the accession of the People's Assembly of Somalia and the National Assembly of Djibouti to the AASGP.
On the sidelines of the conference, HE Dr Ahmed bin Nasser al-Fadhala met with Counsellor Ahmed Ezzat Manna, the secretary-general of the Egyptian House of Representatives, and vice-president of the Arab Association of Secretaries General of Parliaments.
The meeting reviewed a number of topics related to the AASGP activities.