2nd APKN Council of Secretaries-General
Aide Memoire
Overview
The APKN Secretariat is convening the 2nd APKN Council of Secretaries-General. The Meeting kindly hosted by the East African Legislative Assembly with the support of UN/DESA Africa i-Parliament Action Plan, will take place at the AICC Building in Arusha, Tanzania on the 27-28th of October 2011.
Established in June 2008 at the International Conference hosted by the People’s Assembly of Egypt and attended by representatives from 37 national and regional assemblies from Africa, the APKN has been modelled around successful parliamentary networks like the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) in the United States and the European Centre for Parliamentary Research and Documentation (ECPRD) in Europe. APKN has in the last two years become instrumental in promoting common information services and high quality continent wide capacity building programs for Parliaments.
The 1st APKN Plenary took place on 19 and 20 October 2010 at the Pan African Parliament Chamber, in Midrand, South Africa. It was run consecutively with the first Africa Speakers Conference and the World e-Parliament Conference. At the Conferences, Speakers, Members of Parliaments, Secretaries-General, Parliamentary staff and officials, experts from international organizations and academics who work and deal with information and communication technologies in legislatures had the opportunity to analyze good practices, exchange views on latest trends and institutional developments, learn from each other’s experiences, network with peers, and build partnerships in an international setting.
As a follow-up from the last plenary and a buildup to the 2nd APKN Council of Secretaries-General, all member assemblies are encouraged to fill out the APKN Members' Survey. This survey intends to assess the information and skill needs of African Parliaments (members and staff) and evaluate if and how the Africa Parliamentary Knowledge Network (APKN) can become a valuable source of information and capacity building services for its members. By surveying parliaments in defining needs and objectives concerning the APKN portal, we intend to make sure that the portal will become more effective in addressing the needs and requirements of African Parliaments.
Rationale
The APKN Council of Secretaries-General, seeks the participation of Secretaries General and Clerks of African member assemblies, is chaired by the Secretary of the APKN. The Council is responsible for interacting with the APKN Secretariat and for initiating, organizing, and supporting APKN-related activities in their assemblies.
The Secretary General/Clerk of each member assembly is also expected to coordinate the activities of the parliamentary officials in their assembly who are requested to play an active role in the APKN activities.
In particular, the Council of Secretaries General is responsible for:
- coordinating the systematic collection of information and lessons from the experiences of their assembly and disseminating them to other members of the APKN;
- promoting a knowledge driven learning culture and raising awareness among parliamentary officials about the benefits of the adoption and use of modern tools for information management and knowledge sharing;
- supporting the exchange of information and documents among members by responding in a timely way to requests for information and documents from the Secretariat;
- initiating requests for information and documents on behalf of their assembly through the APKN Secretariat.
It is therefore important that in cooperation with the Secretary of the APKN, the Council of Secretaries General advises on the activities and the strategic planning of the APKN on an annual basis over and above supporting the organization of the activities of the APKN. For this reason the APKN secretariat is convening the Council to further refine the work plan and discuss ways and means of operationalising the decision of the APKN Plenary 2010. The Council also provides participants with opportunity to share and learn on current trends in parliamentary administration.
Goals
The APKN Council of Secretaries-General is set to attract the participation of representatives of all African Parliaments and is meant to provide a unique opportunity to shape the future direction of the APKN by providing policy and programmatic direction for the period 2012-2013. More specifically the Council will
- Establish the Steering Committee of the Thematic Groups and identify the priority areas for each of the Thematic groups as well as agree on the terms of reference for each group;
- Review the APKN Action Plan and identify priorities areas as well as assign responsibilities for the implementation of the different activities;
- Show case and promote the APKN Portal as the primary means of collaboration and exchange of information in the future,
Target Audience
The APKN Council of Secretaries-General will be attended by Secretaries General/Clerks and Parliamentary staff and officials.
It is also expected that knowledge partners working in the Parliamentary domain will attend the meeting as observers.
Expected Outcome
At the meeting participants will discuss the different proposals for activities and will have the opportunity to review good practices, exchange views on latest trends and institutional developments, learn from each other’s experiences as well as build partnerships that will support the implementation of the APKN Plan of Action.
Languages
The working languages of the Meeting will be English, French, Portuguese and Arabic.
Venue
AICC Building in Arusha, Tanzania.
Organisation
The 2nd APKN Council of Secretaries-General is hosted by the East African Legislative Assembly (EALA) with support from the Africa i-Parliament Action Plan (UN/DESA), under the aegis of the Africa Parliamentary Knowledge Network.
Insurance - Liability
The conference organizers cannot be held liable for loss, injury or damage to any person or property or for any additional expenditure incurred due to changes, whatever the causes. Participants are advised to make their own arrangements for health and travel insurance.
Contact Details:
| Parliament of South Africa | East African Legislative Assembly | Africa i-Parliaments Action Plan |
| Ms Chamelain Birch Parliament of South Africa Tel: 27 (21) 403 2737 Fax:27 (21) 403 3217 Email: cbirch@parliament.gov.za |
Ms. Emily Okema EALA Tel: +27 255 20 50 158 Fax: +27 255 27 25 03 103 Email: okema@eachq.com emilyo@myself.com |
Ms Cecilia Matanga Africa i-Parliament Action Plan United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA) Tel: 254 20 3749893 Fax: 254 20 3749894 Email: info@parliaments.info |
Programme
Practical Information
Date Venue, and Working Modalities
The APKN Secretariat is convening the 2nd APKN Council of Secretaries-General at the AICC Building in Arusha, Tanzania on 27th and 28th October 2011. A detailed agenda will be posted on the APKN website.
Participation and Registration
To be registered, delegates are requested to complete and return to the Africa i-Parliament Action Plan, the enclosed registration form, which can also be downloaded from the APKN website www.apkn.org/arusha-2011.
Delegates that qualify for sponsorship (see Support for Parliamentary Delegations) will be required to submit over and above the registration form above, a “participant form” and a “medical note” stating that they are in fit to travel and email them to info@parliaments.info by 23rd September 2011.
Security
For security reasons, all delegates will be requested to wear their identification badges at all times during their stay at the Meeting and related social functions. Distribution of badges will start on Thursday, the 27th of October 2011 at 07:00 am at the AICC Building, two hours before the start of the APKN Council of Secretaries-General.
Languages
The working languages of the meeting will be English, Arabic, French and Portuguese. Official documentation of the meeting will be available in those languages.
Documents
The official documents of the Meeting will be its agenda, background documents and the list of participants. These documents will be distributed to participants at the Registration Desk. Should delegates wish to distribute their own documents or other material pertaining to the agenda of the conference, they may use a table provided for that purpose in the immediate vicinity of the meeting room.
A provisional List of Participants will be issued on the basis of confirmations received by the organisers up to 15 October 2011. For technical reasons, it will not be possible to produce a revised list during the Conference, but one will be issued at the end of the event and will be placed on the Conference website.
Visas
Attention is drawn to the provisions in force regarding entry into Tanzania, which may refuse entry to those not having the required visa. Delegates requiring an entry visa must obtain it from the Tanzanian Consulate or Diplomatic Mission responsible for the necessary arrangements in their country.
Delegates should note that the application process can take 4-6 weeks. Delegates are strongly advised to make the necessary arrangements at the earliest opportunity. Please note that the organizers are not able to provide assistance in obtaining visas.
Health
Seek medical advice before travelling to Tanzania to ensure that all appropriate vaccinations are up-to-date.
Hotel Accommodation, Local transport and city information
A list of hotels, with preferential rates for the Council of Secretaries-General, is available below. Delegates will be responsible for their own hotel expenses and to make direct arrangements with the chosen hotels. It is suggested that delegations from countries having a Diplomatic Mission or Consulate in Tanzania request them to make their hotel arrangements.
Additional useful information concerning transport from the airports to Arusha, local transport (taxis, and train), addresses of foreign diplomatic missions and embassies, museums, restaurants and tourist attractions will be made available on this page.
Accomodation in Arusha,Tanzania
| No. | Name | Price | Contact details |
| 1 | Kibo Palace Hotel |
Single 95$ Double-115$ (Bed and Breakfast) |
P. O. Box 2523 Old Moshi Road Arusha,Tanzania |
| 2 | The Arusha Hotel |
Single 100$ |
P.O. Box 88 Arusha, Tanzania |
| Impala Hotel |
90$ single
102$ & 134$
|
Off Old Moshi/Simeon Rd. Arusha Tanzania 7302 |
|
| 4 | East African All-Suite Hotel |
All rooms are executive |
P.O.Box 2291 Fax: +255 27 2050074 |
Please note that EALA has requested the delegates to indicate their choice of hotel so that they can forward the list to the individual hotels at the negotiated rate.
Contact - EALA
Ms. Emily Okema
EALA
Tel: +27 255 20 50 158
Fax: +27 255 27 25 03 103
Email: okema@eachq.com
emilyo@myself.com
Support to Parliamentary delegations
To ensure representation of all Parliaments at the APKN Meeting the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UN/DESA) through the Africa i-Parliament Action Plan will support the travel and per diem expenses of one delegate per Parliament (two in the case of bicameral parliaments), being the APKN Coordinator. The United Nations will support delegates only on written request from Parliaments. UN rules and regulations will be applied to travel and per diem. Parliaments are expected to directly support any additional delegates. Support should be requested by the Parliament in writing and sent together with the attached “participant form” and a “medical note” stating that they are in fit to travel to info@parliaments.info not later than 23rd September 2011.
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