PROGRAMME ENHANCING THE EFFECTIVENESS OF PARLIAMENTS: CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES

Transcription

1 PROGRAMME ENHANCING THE EFFECTIVENESS OF PARLIAMENTS: Monday 27 - Thursday 30 October th WILTON PARK CONFERENCE CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES in cooperation with: Department for International Development, World Bank Institute Commonwealth Parliamentary Association In association with: Parliamentary Centre, Westminster Foundation for Democracy MONDAY 27 OCTOBER 1500 INTRODUCTION AND WELCOME TO WILTON PARK Roger WILLIAMSON WELCOME AND BRIEF THEMATIC INTRODUCTION Mark ROBINSON Head of Governance and Social Development Group, Department for International Rick STAPENHURST Senior Public Sector Management Specialist, Governance Team, World Bank Institute, Washington DC PROMOTING PARLIAMENTARY EFFECTIVENESS; THE CURRENT STATE OF PLAY AND THE ROAD AHEAD Objective: To set the scene by evaluating the role of parliaments in different contexts, assessing evolving international experience and outlining opportunities/challenges for those involved in parliamentary strengthening. The session should seek to signpost key issues which will be discussed in more depth throughout the conference. Key questions include: What accounts for the key differences in parliamentary performance in different contexts? Why do some parliaments become powerful forces for change in particular contexts while others do not? What are the informal and formal political processes which shape the effectiveness of parliaments? To what extent are weaknesses in parliamentary effectiveness susceptible to technical fixes and other types of capacity-building? Roger WILLIAMSON (Chair) WHY SOME LEGISLATURES DEVELOP WHILE OTHERS DO NOT: AFRICAN LEGISLATURES AND THE THIRD WAVE OF DEMOCRATISATION Joel D BARKAN

2 Professor Emeritus, Department of Political Science and Senior Associate, Centre for Strategic International Studies, University of Iowa, Washington DC PROMOTING PARLIAMENTARY EFFECTIVENESS: OVERVIEW AND INTRODUCTION Vidar HELGESEN Secretary-General, International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (IDEA), Stockholm Tea, coffee and conference photograph PARLIAMENTS STRENGTHENING INITIATIVES: LESSONS LEARNT AND GOOD PRACTICE Drinks Reception 1945 Dinner Objective: To take stock of emerging lessons and best practice parliamentary strengthening initiatives from both a donor and recipient perspective. And to consider the implications of the Paris Declaration and the recent Accra High Level forum for relationships between donors, partner governments and parliaments. Key questions include: What are the key lessons to be derived from the last decade or so of parliamentary strengthening programmes? Are parliamentary programmes owned/led by national legislatures? Is donor support effectively co-ordinated? To what extent do parliaments participate in the broader aid dialogue between donors and partner countries? What are the implications of the Accra agenda for the role of parliaments in aid processes? How effective are donors in linking support to parliaments with broader democratic institution-building activities? Mark ROBINSON (Chair) Head of Governance and Social Development Group, Department for International WBI PARLIAMENTARY STRENGTHENING LESSONS LEARNED AND POINTERS FOR THE FUTURE Rick STAPENHURST Senior Public Sector Specialist, Governance Team, World Bank Institute, Washington DC UNDP AND PARLIAMENTARY DEVELOPMENT: LESSONS LEARNED AND GOOD PRACTICES Kevin DEVEAUX Parliamentary Development Policy Adviser, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), New York PARLIAMENTARY STRENGTHENING AND THE PARIS PRINCIPLES Alan HUDSON Research Fellow, Overseas Development Institute, London ANATOMY OF A SUCCESSFUL LEGISLATIVE STRENGTHENING PROGRAM: TALES FROM UGANDA AND THE UKRAINE Keith SCHULZ Legislative Strengthening Adviser, Office of Democracy and Governance, US Agency for International Development (USAID), Washington DC TUESDAY 28 OCTOBER COMPARATIVE REGIONAL PERSPECTIVES ON PARLIAMENTARY EFFECTIVENESS

3 (1): LATIN AMERICA, SE ASIA, THE PACIFIC AND THE MIDDLE EAST Objective: To flesh out the experience of parliaments in different regional contexts in order to better understand the factors which drive/impede parliamentary effectiveness. Key questions include: Are there specific regional stories which can be discerned? Do we have sufficient data on parliamentary performance in different countries/regions which allow for meaningful comparisons? What is the potential for transferring lessons between regions and countries? What roles can and should parliamentary networks play in disseminating best practice between regions/countries? PARLIAMENTARY STRENGTHENING IN LATIN AMERICA AND EAST AFRICA: SOME SIMILARITIES AND DIFFERENCES John JOHNSON Director of Governance, National Democratic Institute for International Affairs, Washington LESSONS FROM THE PACIFIC Quinton CLEMENTS Deputy Director, Centre for Democratic Institutions (CDI), The Australian National University, Canberra COMPARATIVE REGIONAL PERSPECTIVES ON PARLIAMENTARY EFFECTIVENESS (2): AFRICA Tea and Coffee Objective: To understand factors which drive and impede parliamentary reform and effectiveness in the African context and the extent to which parliamentary strengthening initiatives have addressed this. Key questions include: Is there a distinctive African story which can be discerned? Do we have sufficient data on parliamentary performance in different countries which allow for meaningful comparisons across the Continent? What is the potential for transferring lessons between countries? What roles can and should parliamentary networks play in disseminating best practice between regions/countries? Roger WILLIAMSON (Chair) AFRICAN LEGISLATURE PROJECT: INITIAL FINDINGS Robert MATTES Professor of Political Studies, Director of the Democracy in Africa Research Unit, University of Cape Town, Rondebosch and Shaheen MOZAFFAR Professor, Department of Political Science, Bridgewater State College, Bridgewater PARLIAMENTARY STRENGTHENING CONCLUSIONS OF A NEW STUDY Rasheed DRAMAN Director, Africa Programme, Parliamentary Centre, Accra THE ROLE OF THE COMMONWEALTH PARLIAMENTARY ASSOCIATION IN PARLIAMENTARY REFORMS IN AFRICA William SHIJA Secretary General, Commonwealth Parliamentary Association, London THE ROLE OF PARLIAMENTS IN FRAGILE AND CONFLICT AFFECTED STATES Objective: To better understand the specific constraints parliaments face in fragile and conflict-affected environment and to draw out key lessons for parliamentary strengthening activities in these contexts. Key questions include: What is the relationship between parliaments and broader processes of state-building in fragile and conflict affected environments? What are the opportunities/risks associated with donor support to parliaments in these contexts? To what

4 Lunch extent are these similar/different to lessons from other contexts? Are there successful examples of where parliamentary strengthening has helped to contribute to state and peace building objectives in fragile and conflict-affected contexts? Stefan KOSSOFF (Chair) Senior Governance Adviser, Policy and Research Division, Department for International PARLIAMENTS AS PEACEBUILDERS IN CONFLICT-AFFECTED COUNTRIES Mitchell O BRIEN Consultant, Parliamentary Strengthening Program, World Bank Institute, Washington DC PARLIAMENTS IN THE BROADER CONTEXT OF GOVERNANCE/STATE/SOCIETY FRAGILITY Marco MEZZERA Research Fellow, Conflict Research Unit (CRU), Netherlands Institute of International Relations, Clingendael, The Hague POST-CONFLICT PARLIAMENTS AND THE PROMOTION OF RECONCILIATION Martin CHUNGONG Director, Division for the Promotion of Democracy, Inter-Parliamentary Union, Geneva PARLIAMENTS AND THE POLITICAL CONTEXT Tea and Coffee Objective: To understand how formal and informal political processes influence the way parliaments operate in different country contexts. And to explore how technical capacity building interventions can be better attuned to political realities. The session will then, using illustrative case studies, address the political context of Parliaments and assess their role in the political system as a whole. Key questions will include: What is the role that parliaments play in different political systems? How does the nature of politics influence the way parliamentarians behave? How can donors be more politically-sensitive and astute in the way they support parliaments? What are the incentives that can promote a shift from ethnic, religious or regional-based to issues-based politics? Where are successful examples of such a transformation in the nature of parliamentary politics? David FRENCH (Chair) Chief Executive, Westminster Foundation for Democracy, London THE POLITICS OF PARLIAMENTARY REFORM Greg POWER Director, Global Partners and Associates Limited, London Case Study: MAKING PARLIAMENT WORK; THE CASE OF PAKISTAN Mohammed WASEEM Professor, Department of Social Studies, Lahore University of Management Studies, Lahore Cantt Case Studies: Democratic Republic of Congo, Kenya, Sierra Leone David LEONARD Formerly Dean of International and Area Studies at the University of California, Berkeley; Currently Professorial Fellow, Institute of Development Studies, University of Sussex PARLIAMENTS AND PARLIAMENTARY STRENGTHENING A VIEW FROM THE SOUTH AND TRANSITION COUNTRIES

5 Objectives: To hear from parliamentarians their perspectives of the main challenges and opportunities facing parliaments in different contexts. Key questions: What are the key constraints that parliaments face in fulfilling their key functions/roles in different contexts? What is the balance between representing constituents, overseeing legislation and drafting legislation in day-to-day work? How do political parties influence the operation of parliaments and the behaviour of individual MP s? Does the government welcome parliamentary scrutiny over its activities (e.g. through the budget)? How have donors contributed to (or undermined) parliamentary strengthening initiatives? Ben DICKINSON (Chair) Head of Governance, Conflict and Fragile States, Development Cooperation Directorate, Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), Paris FEEDBACK FROM THE HIGH LEVEL FORUM ON AID EFFECTIVENESS HELD IN ACCRA, SEPTEMBER 2008 Ben DICKINSON Head of Governance, Conflict and Fragile States, Development Cooperation Directorate, Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), Paris Giselle ISSAC-ARRINDELL Speaker, House of Representatives, Department of Legislature, Government of Antigua and Barbuda, St John s Aloisea INYUMBA MP Senator, The Senate, Chamber of Deputies, Parliament of Rwanda, Kigali PARALLEL WORKING GROUPS 1915 Dinner WEDNESDAY 29 OCTOBER Further Reflections From Central and Latin America and Caribbean Anna LEKVALL Senior Programme Officer, International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (IDEA), Stockholm Middle East: Lebanon Case Study Anwar EL-KHALIL MP Member of Parliament, Lebanese Parliament, Beirut Sub-Saharan Africa: Malawi Case Study Abbie SHAWA MP Member of Parliament, National Assembly of Malawi, Lilongwe Parliamentary Development in a Conflict-Affected State: Sudan Case Study Mudawi EL TURABI Chairman, Security and Defence Sub-Committee, Sudan National Assembly, Omdurman FEEDBACK FROM DISCUSSION GROUPS AND PLENARY DISCUSSION OF EMERGING THEMES THE ROLE OF PARLIAMENTS IN POVERTY REDUCTION AND THE PROMOTION OF GENDER EQUALITY Objective: To understand the extent to which parliaments can progress a poverty reduction agenda and represent the interests of the poorest and most marginalised groups, including women, and to identify examples of good practice. Key questions include: What factors influence the ability/willingness of parliaments to progress an agenda around poverty reduction or gender equality? What are the key entry points? How can parliaments better represent the societies which they serve? What are the

6 Tea and Coffee examples of successful initiatives to promote the representation of women and other marginalised groups in parliaments? Have these translated into improved policy outcomes for these excluded groups? What re the implications for donors? Rasheed DRAMAN (Chair) Director, Africa Programmes, Parliamentary Centre, Accra POVERTY ERADICATION, RESOURCE ALLOCATION AND PARLIAMENTARY CONTROL Médard MULANGALA LWAKABWANGA MP Member of Parliament, National Assembly, Kinshasa GENDER INEQUALITIES AND PARLIAMENTARY POLITICS: DILEMMAS OF CHANGE Shirin RAI Director, Leverhulme Trust Programme, Gendered Ceremony and Ritual in Parliament; Professor, Department of Politics and International Studies, University of Warwick, Coventry UNDERSTANDING AND ENGAGING WITH POLITICAL PARTIES Lunch Objective: To understand better the role that political parties play in different contexts and to draw out lessons learned/best practice from party strengthening initiatives and their links to parliamentary strengthening work Key questions include: What is the role that political parties play in different contexts? Do ethnic, religious or regional-based political parties undermine prospects for democratic development and institution building? Do strong political parties translate into effective parliaments? What has been learnt from donors work to strengthen political parties? How effective are party-to-party capacity building activities? How can donors better link parliamentary and political party strengthening activities? Arthur DONAHOE (Chair) Former Secretary-General, Commonwealth Parliamentary Association THE REVOLVING DOOR: CAN YOU HAVE A MULTI-PARTY DEMOCRACY WITHOUT EFFECTIVE PARTIES? Hugh BAYLEY MP Former Chair, Westminster Foundation for Democracy; Labour Member of Parliament, City of York Constituency, House of Commons, London DEMOCRACY AND POLITICAL PARTY ASSISTANCE IN POST-CONFLICT SOCIETIES Alvaro PINTO SCHOLTBACH Regional Director, Latin America and Carribean, Netherlands Institute for Multiparty Democracy, The Hague UNDP S POLITICAL PARTY WORK: CURRENT STATUS AND CHALLENGES FOR THE FUTURE Sarah LISTER Governance and Civil Society Adviser, Oslo Governance Centre, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), Oslo PARALLEL WORKING GROUPS Political Party Strengthening and the Work of Westminster Foundation for Democracy David FRENCH Chief Executive, Westminster Foundation for Democracy, London Parliamentary and Political Party Strengthening: Some Lessons From Latin America Adam BEHRENDT Director, GNTP Institute, La Paz, Formerly Department for International Development,

7 London Tea and Coffee Parliamentary Development in Resource Rich Countries: Nigeria Case Study Isa Bio IBRAHIM Speaker, Kwara State House of Assembly, Ilorin Gender and Parliaments: Lessons from International IDEA Rumbidzai KANDAWASVIKA-NHUNDU Senior Programme Officer, Democracy Assessment and Analysis, International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (IDEA), Stockholm FEEDBACK FROM WORKING GROUPS PARLIAMENTARY BENCHMARKS AND INDICATORS Objective: To gain an appreciation of recent developments and initiatives in the parliamentary indicators field and to assess the strengths and weaknesses of different approaches for assessing parliamentary effectiveness. Key questions: What are the different types of indicators for assessing the effectiveness of parliaments and for evaluating the success of donor interventions? Is it feasible to have universally-agreed indicators or do they need to be context-specific? To what extent are donors using recognised indicators to assess the impact of their work? How can greater harmonisation be achieved in the indicators field? Roger WILLIAMSON (Chair) TOWARDS INTERNATIONAL STANDARDS FOR DEMOCRATIC PARLIAMENTS THE CASE FOR MINIMUM STANDARDS OR BENCHMARKS FOR DEMOCRATIC POLITICS Scott HUBLI Senior Adviser, Executive Office, National Democratic Institute for International Affairs, Washington DC Lisa VON TRAPP Adviser, World Bank Institute, Paris CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS 1900 Reception drinks 1930 Conference Dinner THURSDAY 30 OCTOBER Stefan KOSSOFF Senior Governance Adviser, Policy and Research Division, Department for International Rick STAPENHURST Senior Public Sector Management Specialist, Governance Team, World Bank Institute, Washington DC Breakfast and payment of bills Participants depart