53rd Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference, India
This agenda for the Conference was to discuss environmental and accountability issues under the theme: Delivering Democracy and Sustainable Development
The programme included- a workshop on relations between Parliament and the media in Tonga, a conference in British Columbia with the World Bank Institute on anti-corruption and poverty reduction, a workshop in Kenya on African trade issues with the World Trade Organization, a forum in Uganda with the Commonwealth Secretariat on gender issues in advance of the Commonwealth Women’s Affairs Ministers Meeting there and the production of television and radio programmes on the advancement of parliamentary democracy.
The committee was briefed on the state of United Nations-sponsored talks to end 33 years of Turkish military occupation of 36.4 per cent of Cyprus.The Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference also heard addresses by the Commonwealth Secretary General, H.E. Rt Hon. Don McKinnon, and CPA Secretary-General Dr William F. Shija. The conference was opened by the President of India, Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, and presided over by Hon. Somnath Chatterjee, MP, Speaker of the Lok Sabha, India’s lower House
Approximately 70 Parliamentarians from more than 30 nations, states, provinces and territories with populations of under 400,000 discussed “Protecting the Environment to Assure Sustainable Development” and three other issues over two days prior to the plenary conference.
