CDI Parliamentary Committee Workshop for Solomon Islands Parliament
As part of CDI's program of in-country training courses for parliamentarians and parliamentary staff, and at the request of the Speaker of the National Parliament of Solomon Islands, Rt Hon. Sir Peter Kenilorea KBE, PC, CDI conducted a training workshop for Members of the National Parliament. The workshop was held at Parliament House in Honiara on 16-17 April 2008.
The workshop was organised in partnership with the Solomon Islands National Parliament Office and the UNDP Solomon Islands Parliamentary Support Project. The focus of the training was on the role of parliamentary committees with an emphasis on engaging the community through committee work.
CDI Deputy Director, Quinton Clements, convened the workshop, together with:
- Senator The Hon. Kay Patterson - Senator for Victoria, Parliament of Australia;
- Hon. Moses Maladina - Member for Esa'ala Open & Chair, Parliamentary Select Committee on the Ombudsman Commission, National Parliament of Papua New Guinea; and
- Mr Steven Reynolds - Clerk Assistant of Committees and the Usher of the Black Rod, Legislative Council, Parliament of New South Wales.
37 of the current 49 Members of the Solomon Islands Parliament participated in the two day workshop, including Prime Minister Derek Sikua, the Leader of the Opposition, Hon. Manasseh Sogavare, and several current government ministers. Key senior Solomon Islands public servants were also invited to participate as a way of enhancing their understanding of the parliamentary process.
The workshop program was based on sharing the experiences of other parliaments in the region, specifically those of Australia and Papua New Guinea, with Solomon Islands parliamentarians and staff. The first day of the program was devoted to presentations on the Australian (both at the Federal and State levels) and Papua New Guinean experiences of working with parliamentary committees followed by question and answer sessions. Participants then broke into smaller groups to consider three themes - what makes effective committee membership, are the current operational processes for Solomon Islands parliamentary committees best serving the needs of those committees, and procedural issues such as the powers of committees and protecting witnesses. The day two sessions were focused on taking the participants through a typical inquiry process - establishing an inquiry, planning, collecting written and oral evidence, and reporting back to the House. The workshop concluded in the afternoon of Thursday 17 April with the holding of a mock public hearing.
On the basis of the evaluation feedback from Members, the excellent attendance of Members and the level of their engagement in the program, the workshop was very successful. By including Mr Reynolds of the NSW Parliament in the team of facilitators/presenters, CDI was able to assist both parliaments with the twinning arrangement between them established as part of a recent Commonwealth Parliamentary Association initiative. CDI has also been able to encourage and assist with further capacity building in the Papua New Guinean National Parliament by enabling one its Members, Hon. Moses Maladina, to learn how the Solomon Islands Parliament has successfully undertaken its rebuilding process.
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