African Parliamentary Index Report to be launched on Tuesday

Accra, June 6, GNA - The Parliamentary Centre, a Canadian not-for-profit, non-partisan organization devoted to improving the effectiveness of representative Legislative Assemblies around the world, will on Tuesday June 7, hold a special ceremony to launch the African Parliamentary Index (API) Report in Nairobi, Kenya.

A statement copied to the Ghana News Agency on Sunday said the launch= , the first of its kind, would be held under the auspices of the CIDA-funded Africa Parliamentary Strengthening Program (APSP) for Budget Oversight. It will be witnessed by Members of Parliaments from partner Parliaments of the APSP - Benin, Ghana, Kenya, Senegal, Uganda, Tanzania an= d Zambia as well as diplomatic corps and the media.

The launch will be performed by the Speaker of the Kenya National Assembly, Kenneth Marende. The API is a unique tool designed by the Parliamentary Centre to provide a standard and simplified system for self-assessment of the performance of Parliaments in Africa, especially the seven (7) APSP select Parliaments.

The statement said the process of assessment was led by APSP partner Parliaments and validated by key stakeholders including, independent research institutions, groups of civil society organizations, and universit= y academics. It said that contributed to ensuring the legitimacy and country ownership of the final outcome.

The findings, the statement noted, pointed to obvious capacity strengths as well as demonstrable weaknesses of participating Parliaments. "It is hoped that partner Parliaments find this information useful in designing their strategic direction, including capacity strengthening plans for their individual Parliaments."

The statement said participants at the launch would have the opportunity to interact with MPs from all the seven Parliaments and discuss what implications the findings could have on their initiatives to develop capacity in budget oversight in their respective countries. It added that the results would serve as a great resource for academics, scholars, students, politicians and development-oriented institutions pursuing innovations for improving the work Parliaments do and how to achieve lasting impact for democratic growth.