IPU Lauds “Progress” Made at Association of Secretaries General of Parliaments under Moroccan Presidency
Leaders of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) in Geneva on Monday evening praised the progress made by the Association of Secretaries General of Parliaments (ASGP) under the Moroccan presidency, in the person of the Secretary General of the House of Representatives, Mr. Najib El Khadi, whose three-year term ends this week.
“I would like to pay tribute to ASGP President, Mr. Najib El Khadi, who I know has played a key role in the Association's development over recent years,” said IPU President, Hon. Tulia Ackson, at a ceremony marking the 85th anniversary of the Association, which brings together the secretaries-general of more than 150 countries.
“The achievements we are celebrating here today are, I have no doubt, the fruit of his dedication,” added Hon. Tulia Ackson at the event, held on the occasion of the 149th Assembly of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (October 13-17).
For his part, IPU Secretary General, Mr. Martin Chungong thanked Mr. El Khadi for “the work he has done as President of this important institution within the Inter-Parliamentary Union”.
“There is a great deal of progress that has been made thanks to his leadership, and I would like to pay tribute to him at the end of his mandate,” he told MAP on the sidelines of the ceremony.
Mr. Chungong noted that under Mr. El Khadi's presidency, “the Association has taken on a global scope and scale and embodied the diversity of different systems”, expressing the wish to see those who will take over “build on the foundations he laid so that this association continues to serve the global parliamentary community”.
In his inaugural address, Mr. El Khadi said that the celebration of the Association's 85th anniversary was “a privileged moment” to recall the ASGP's rich history, but also to pay tribute to the “spirit of cooperation and solidarity” that has united the members of this structure since its first meeting in August 1938 in The Hague.
“The ASGP enables us to see that we are all confronted with the same issues, which require the use of our collective planetary brainpower to meet the challenges of today's parliamentarism,” he noted, adding, “This is a forum where we can share our thoughts, best practices and experiences.”
The Association of Secretaries General of Parliaments, which first met in Oslo on August 16, 1939, is a consultative body of the Inter-Parliamentary Union and seeks to facilitate personal contacts between holders of the office of Secretary General of any parliamentary assembly, whether or not it is a member of the Union.
The aims of the Association are to study the law, procedure, practice, and working methods of the various parliaments, and to propose measures to improve these methods and to ensure cooperation between the services of the different parliaments.
Like the IPU, the ASGP meets twice a year, in conjunction with the autumn and spring sessions of the Union.
In addition to Mr. Najib El Khadi, Morocco is represented at the 149th IPU Assembly by a delegation from the Moroccan Parliamentary Representation, led by Rep. Omar Hejira (Istiqlali Group of Unity and Egalitarianism), and including Rep. Mustapha Reddad (Group of the National Rally of Independents) and Rep. Khaddouj Slassi (Social Group – Ittihadi Opposition).