Cyril Oteng Nsiah (middle) flanked by his lieutenants
President Nana Akufo-Addo has been penciled to open the 66th Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference (CPC) to be held in Accra, Ghana, from September 30 to October 6, 2023, by the Parliament of Ghana and the CPA Ghana Branch.
The Clerk to Parliament, Cyril Oteng Nsiah, who made the announcement at a news conference in Parliament yesterday, said the President will deliver the keynote address at the conference that will be held under the distinguished patronage of the Speaker of Parliament, Alban Sumana Kingsford Bagbin.
Mr. Nsiah, who doubles as the Ghana Branch Secretary of the CPA, stated that the international event would be attended by 686 delegates from parliaments of Commonwealth countries.
According to him, the delegates include observers and accompanying officials from 56 National Branches (national legislatures) and 111 Sub-National Branches (State/Provincial Legislatures) across the nine (9) geographic regions of the Commonwealth.
He said the opening ceremony will be followed by workshops to discuss various topics relating to security, human rights, environment, economy, gender and other cross-cutting issues.
Ghana as the host nation will hold a workshop which will deliberate on the topic: “Combating the threat of terrorism to Statehood: The Role of Parliament.”
He revealed that Minister of National Security, Albert Kan-Dapaah is expected to lead discussions on the topic.
He said the conference, which will be held under the theme, “The Commonwealth Charter 10 years on: Values and Principles for Parliaments to Uphold,” is aimed at fostering dialogue and cooperation among member countries to address pressing global challenges within the context of Commonwealth values.
Mr. Nsiah indicated that the conference would emphasize the importance of parliamentary diplomacy in addressing these challenges and highlight the role of parliaments in shaping policies that benefit their citizens.
He disclosed that during the conference, there will also be a number of additional conferences and meetings including the 66th CPA General Assembly meetings of the CPA Executive Committee, 39th CPA Small Branches Conference, and meetings of the Commonwealth Women Parliamentarians (CWP) and Commonwealth Parliamentarians with Disabilities (CPwD) networks.
By Ernest Kofi Adu, Parliament House