Commonwealth News and Information Service (London)
6 May 2011
press release
Members of Parliament attending a trade policy workshop in the Zambian city of Livingstone have been called upon to increasingly seek information and knowledge about current issues in the international and regional trading systems to be able to effectively play their oversight role.
The workshop from 3 to 5 May 2011, organised by the Commonwealth Secretariat, the African Development Bank and the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association, brought together legislators from Commonwealth Southern African countries.
Speaking at the opening of the meeting on 3 May 2011, the deputy Speaker of the Zambian Parliament, Mutale Nalumango, said that it matters for MPs to understand the dynamics, rules and regulations governing trade for them to be able to sign and ratify agreements that are in the best interest of their people.
“If we as MPs are to challenge and question the policies governments bring before us for debate and ratification we must be better informed, perhaps more informed by Cabinet, but in most cases we are not and as such many members just keep silent when important issues like trade decisions are brought before us,” she said.
“We ought to be knowledgeable, and make intelligent contributions to these policies; otherwise we will continue to be confused by the executive.”
The seminar examined issues such as the dynamic role of the modern day parliament in the management and oversight of trade policy, the structure, principles and functioning of international trading systems and how changes impact on economic growth and development. MPs also reviewed the functioning of the World Trade Organisation system as well as the gender dimensions of trade negotiations.
The MPs who spoke were unanimous in welcoming the workshop and thanked the Commonwealth, saying that it is through such initiatives that MPs get to share experiences, best practices and challenges – and how to deal with them.
An MP from Lesotho, echoing the concerns of many others, said one of the reasons many legislators don’t make “useful contributions” about issues, particularly those pertaining to complex trade policy, is that “the language of the documents that are brought to us for discussion is too complex and technical”.
Other legislators said they need to be supported with simplified, jargon-free briefing papers, to guide them through the myriad terminologies used in trade negotiations. They also said that they would be better served if their governments and development partners helped them establish resource centres, libraries and access to modern information and communication technologies – like the internet.
Speaking on the second day of the workshop, Zambian minister of trade Felix Mutati called for fuller engagement by MPs in deliberations on important issues like trade.
“The people outside the House whom you represent are looking up to you for answers … for policies and laws that will create a conducive atmosphere for doing business, for trade. Put us [the cabinet] to task to explain why we are asking you to approve this agreement or the other,” Mr Mutati said.
He also appealed to the MPs to pass legislation which will advance trade within the region and on the continent, saying that regional integration is one of the ways through which Africa will accelerate trade and get millions of its citizens out of poverty.
“For a long time, we have had this romance and obsession of focusing our trading efforts on the distant markets such as Europe and USA. It is now time to explore ways of first deepening trade with our regional neighbours.”
Edwin Laurent, Head of International Trade and Regional Co-operation at the Commonwealth Secretariat said in his opening remarks that parliaments have constitutional responsibilities to oversee national trade policy, and that as such they require familiarity with an extensive range of often quite technical concepts.
Mr Laurent noted that since most international and regional trading agreements are debated by parliaments, which might need to ratify them, it is crucial that MPs appreciate the full implications of these trade accords and sufficiently master the technical concepts in order to participate fully in the debates.
“The expansion of trade is an important vehicle for promoting economic growth – so our goal in the Commonwealth is for all countries to be able to trade and participate in the system on a beneficial basis; but for this to happen, requires sound trade policies,” he added.
“While we have witnessed spectacular global economic growth with developing countries overall doing well, Sub-Saharan African countries have generally been excluded from the ‘bonanza’. Structural factors, including limited production capabilities and reliance on too few goods and services for generating income have acted as barriers to progress,” he said.
The Zambia workshop is the latest in a series of policy workshops that the Commonwealth has been organising in different regions. Previous seminars for Commonwealth MPs have been held in South Asia, the Caribbean, East Africa and the Pacific.
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