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The Pan African Parliament (PAP) and the Commission on Human and People’s Rights (ACHPR) have signed a memorandum of understanding with a view to strengthening bilateral collaboration between the two institutions.
During the signing ceremony, Hon Chief Fortune Charumbira, the President of the Pan African Parliament, commended the Chairperson of the African Commission on Human and Peoples Rights (ACHPR), Hon. Remy Ngoy Lumbu for strategically taking advantage of the various Organs’ presence in Nairobi, Kenya, to sign Memoranda of Understanding with them.
“Given the general inadequacy of resources across the Union, this is a strategic cost-cutting measure which, at the same time, achieves the objective of codifying bilateral relations with the various Organs, including the PAP. I would like to make a passionate call on the African Union Commission (AUC) to learn from this strategic initiative to make use of events such as AU Summits, which normally bring together all Organs, Agencies, and Institutions, to convene inter-Organ meetings for better and more effective coordination of the work of the organs.
“I would also like to apologise for the time that it has taken for the PAP and ACHPR to finally sign the MOU which ought to have been signed in December 2022. However, due to competing commitments at the time, we were not available to sign the MOU,” Chief Charumbira said.
The PAP President reassured the ACHPR of the PAP’s commitment to strengthening bilateral collaboration, particularly in promoting human rights and conflict prevention, promoting the ratification, domestication, and implementation of African human rights instruments, and sharing expertise and information in addressing human rights issues among others.
Chief Charumbira threw down the gauntlet to the secretariat and political leadership of the two institutions to ensure that the MOU is actualised into concrete joint programmes and initiatives instead of gathering dust on the shelves of both Organs.
He referred to the statement he made in the Operational Coordination Meeting that, it is not enough to count the signing ceremony as an activity and tick the boxes to say “activity done.”
“What is more important is what comes out of the What impact will the joint collaboration have on the lives of the African citizenry? That is what both Organs are working for. It is thus important for the PAP and ACHPR to come together and leverage the different strengths and expertise resident in the two institutions.
“Let me remind the meeting that the acronym TEAM has often been defined as “Together Each Achieves More” which means that PAP and ACHPR are stronger together than they could ever be separately. This collective strength must be utilised for the benefit of the people of Africa.”
He reiterated that the partnership must improve the observance of human rights on the continent and the strengthening of human rights-related legislation.
“In that regard, PAP and ACHPR must also focus on the rights of people in conflict situations such as the war in Sudan, DRC, etc. The MOU targets issues that are tangible and real to the people of the two institutions to make a lasting impact through their collaboration.
“The cooperation between PAP and ACHPR is assured given the fact that the Acting Executive Secretary of the ACHPR, Mme Lindiwe Khumalo, will be moving to the PAP as the first female Clerk of the Pan African Parliament. That alone should reassure the two organs that our cooperation will be sustainable and mutually beneficial as both institutions will hold a special place in Mme Khumalo’s heart,” Chief Charumbira added.