Luanda - The Speaker of the Zimbabwe National Assembly Jacob Mudenda, Wednesday in Luanda, expressed optimism that the transformation of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Parliamentary Forum into a regional parliament would be completed this year.
Speaking to the press after a meeting with Angolan parliament Speaker, Carolina Cerqueira, Jacob Mudenda, who leads the lobbying team for the transformation of the SADC PF into a Regional Parliament, said diplomatic contacts are being made with the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) to become the 12th country to sign the protocol.
The protocol requires a minimum of 12 signatures to enter into force.
Early on Tuesday, Zambia, through its Minister of Justice, Princess Kasune, signed the protocol to transform the SADC PF into a regional parliament.
Carolina Cerqueira and her Zimbabwean counterpart, met with the 1st vice- Speaker of the DRC National Assembly, Isaac Musawu, with the aim of persuading the country to join the protocol.
Isaac Musawu said that a report will be presented to the heads of the DRC's legislative and executive branches with a view to speed up the accession process.
Parliament in the Democratic Republic of Congo is currently in halt.
Meanwhile, the speaker of Zimbabwe's parliament has assured that the lobby team's aim is to get all SADC PF member countries to join the process and that he would try to persuade Botswana, Madagascar and Mauritius to join the process.
The head of the lobbying team hoped that in the next SADC Summit of Heads of State and Government, scheduled for October this year in Zimbabwe, all SADC member states would ratify the treaty.
The amendment to the SADC Treaty was adopted by the SADC Summit of Heads of State and Government on August 17, 2022 in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
Established in September 1997, the SADC Parliamentary Forum, based in Windhoek, Namibia, provides a platform for dialogue between the parliaments of the 16 SADC member states on issues of regional interest and concern.
It has a membership of over 3,500 parliamentarians from Angola, Botswana, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Eswatini, Comoros, Lesotho, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Seychelles, Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe. DC/SC/TED/AMP
