From the 2nd to the 3rd of May 2024, a parliamentary delegation headed by the Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly Hon. Gervais Henrie participated in the plenary of the ‘L’Association des Parlements des Etats Membres de la Commission de l’ocean Indien’ (AP-COI), in Mauritius. The Deputy Speaker was accompanied by Hon. Audrey Vidot, Hon. Philip Monthy, and the Clerk to the National Assembly Mrs. Tania Isaac. The aim of the plenary was to discuss the sustainability, financing and planification of the AP-COI and its Secretariat.
The plenary was officially opened by the current President of AP-COI, and Speaker of the National Assembly of Mauritius, Hon. Sooroojdev Phokeer, following an inspiring message from the Secretary General of the IOC Professor Velayoudom Marimoutou, which was duly delivered by the Director of the Indian Ocean Commission (IOC) Ms. Alice Ndiaye. The ongoing project is generously funded by the Agence Francaise de Development under the ‘projet gouvernance, paix et stabilite’ (GPS) of the IOC. AP-COI is currently composed of four member states, namely Mauritius, Comoros, Madagascar, and Seychelles, who are all represented in the Speakers Conference, Executive Committee and General Assembly of Parliamentarians (plenary).
The participants reviewed decisions made at previous statutory meetings to take stock of achievements and built on those successes by proposing follow-up activities such as seminars on climate change in close collaboration with the Assemblée Parlementaire de la Francophonie (APF), various parliamentary exchanges, and the adoption of a common declaration for AP-COI.
The preliminary results of a comparative study of parliaments of the COI were presented by experts, showing the initial conclusions from data collected through interviews, questionnaires and a thorough literature review on democratic principles, parliamentary procedures, practices, and political systems in the Indian Ocean region. The plenary unanimously agreed to hasten the finalisation of decisions on the structure of AP-COI, financial contributions of member parliaments, the partnership with COI, and the status of AP-COI both regionally and internationally to ensure its transformation into a fully-fledged parliamentary organisation by 2026.
The Executive Committee, composed of a parliamentarian from each member country, then met to plan future meetings and projects of AP-COI, before the fruitful two-day session came to a close
