The State of Qatar, represented by the Shura Council has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) yesterday with the African Parliamentary Union (APU).
The MoU was signed at the headquarters of the People’s Palace in Djibouti during the participation of the Shura Council in the 42nd Conference of Speakers of Parliaments of the African Parliamentary Union (APU).
The MoU was signed by the Speaker of the Shura Council, H E Ahmed bin Abdullah bin Zaid Al Mahmoud, and the Chairperson of the Executive Committee of the African Parliamentary Union, Alassane Bala Sakande.
Under the MoU, the two parties agreed to strengthen parliamentary cooperation and friendship between the State of Qatar and the African Parliamentary Union and bring peace among peoples as well as to enhance parliamentary channels of communication between the two parties, exchange parliamentary knowledge and expertise in the legislative, supervisory and administrative fields, and enrich common points of convergence and work for peace in the world.
The signing ceremony was attended by Speakers of parliaments participating in the conference, a number of members of the Shura Council and Acting Charge d’affaires of the Embassy of the State of Qatar to the Republic of Djibouti, Faisal bin Rashid Al Nuaimi.
In a speech on this occasion, H E the Speaker of the Shura Council said that the State of Qatar’s accession to the African Union as an observer would encourage communication between the Shura Council and the African parliaments on the one hand, and between African and parliamentarians from Qatar on the other.
H E Al Mahmoud stressed that the Shura Council, through this accession, will work to achieve the objectives of the APU for the establishment of a sustainable peace based on cooperation and dialogue and benefit the region and its peoples.
In the same context, and underlining the deepening of ties between the Shura Council and the APU and enhancing the bonds of friendship between them and the desire to continue coordination on regional issues before the international parliamentary organisations, the Shura Council and the APU signed a memorandum of understanding on parliamentary cooperation in order to establish our relationship with the APU within close collaborative framework that ensures its development and continuity, HE the Speaker of the Shura Council noted.
H E the Speaker of the Shura Council expressed his thanks to the African Parliamentary Union, its members, its presidency and its Secretariat for inviting the Shura Council to attend and participate in the 42nd Conference of Speakers of Parliaments of the African Parliamentary Union (APU) and its historic decision to grant the Shura Council of the State of Qatar membership of the APU as an observer.
He also expressed his thanks to all the participating delegations that supported the decision to grant the State of Qatar the membership of the African Parliamentary Union as an observer and stood beside this decision.
The 42nd Conference of Speakers of Parliaments of the APU made amendments to the Statutes and Rules of the Union, including an amendment stipulating that non-AU African countries as well as non-African countries with parliamentary institutions as well as regional and international organisations may be admitted upon written request as observers.