IPU president sets peace, parliamentary oversight as priorities for successor

Outgoing Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) President Dr Tulia Ackson has called on her successor to prioritise peace and security and strengthen parliamentary oversight, particularly in countries affected by conflict, as she prepares to hand over the leadership of the global parliamentary body this week. Dr Ackson, whose three-year term ends during the 153rd IPU Assembly in Arusha, said the next leadership should focus on implementing the organisation’s 2027–2030 strategy while maintaining attention on issues that cut across its work, including conflicts such as the Russia-Ukraine war, climate change and human rights. “I expect that the incoming president who will be elected on Friday this week, I believe their first task is to ensure that the strategy that has been adopted, which will be running from 2027 to 2030, is implemented,” she said. “But the issues that usually run across all the strategies that we have is the issue of peace and security in empowering the members of Parliament to be able to oversee activities that their parliaments are doing but also oversee the government’s activities, especially in war zones,” she added. Dr Ackson has previously identified the war in Ukraine, alongside conflicts in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Sudan, among the crises requiring parliamentary attention. The IPU has also facilitated dialogue between parliamentarians from Russia and Ukraine through a dedicated task force. Her latest remarks come as the IPU prepares to elect its 32nd president on Friday, October 9, at the conclusion of the Arusha assembly. Three candidates are contesting the position: Azerbaijan’s Speaker Sahiba Gafarova, Australia’s Speaker Milton Dick and Chilean Senator Rojo Edwards Silva. Dr Ackson said climate change would be another major issue requiring attention from the incoming leadership. “Another area will be climate-related issues. We all know that we have been going through challenges. So the issue of climate is also very high on the agenda of IPU,” she said. She also called for greater protection of human rights, particularly for vulnerable groups, women, children and people living in conflict zones. “We would like human rights of people to be respected and I believe the incoming president will also be putting a lot of emphasis on the protection of people’s human rights, including the rights of those who are marginalised, including rights of women, rights of children, and those who are in conflict zones,” she said. Dr Ackson, who became the first African woman to lead the IPU when she was elected in October 2023, also disclosed what she described as the biggest challenge she faced during her tenure. “I usually don't like remembering problems but because you asked, I'll give you one. This particular challenge arose in the course of doing my duties as the president. I went to visit one of the countries and other countries were uncomfortable with that and so they reacted in a way that I didn't expect,” she said. She did not name the country during the briefing, but her previous statements as IPU President have highlighted the organisation’s parliamentary diplomacy involving Russia and Ukraine as part of efforts to contribute to peaceful resolution of the conflict. The outgoing president also urged the IPU to continue widening political participation among women and young people, saying representation should translate into influence in decision-making. “At IPU we have always pronounced ourselves as a very inclusive institution and that inclusivity. We have tried to communicate that message to all the membership of IPU, meaning all the parliaments of the world, in the sense that women have to be at the decision-making table but also the youth have to be at the decision-making table,” she said. She said young people should not merely occupy seats in Parliament but should be given the opportunity to influence decisions. “It's not a question of saying young people are in the Parliament. They have to be given the voice. They have to be listened to and they must be given an opportunity to show their ability and so grow their influence in the society,” Dr Ackson said. “Young people out there, go. We are there for you and we will be ready to train you and also to work with you closely,” she added. Meanwhile, National Assembly Speaker Mussa Azzan Zungu said Tanzania was ready to host the five-day assembly, which brings together parliamentarians from across the world. “I take this opportunity to welcome all delegates who have arrived here in Arusha, 246 delegates, our 24 speakers and others. The whole world is here coming to experience what we can do,” Mr Zungu said. He said the preparations had been undertaken by Tanzanians through Parliament, government officials and the private sector. “We are ready for the meeting. We welcome everybody for the meeting and we are ready to deliver, enhancing good governance,” he said. Mr Zungu linked the assembly’s discussions to Tanzania’s Vision 2050, saying its success would depend on governance, political rights, human rights and democracy. “Tanzania has already embarked on this programme of Vision 2050. Vision 2050 will only succeed on the pillars of governance, political rights, human rights and democracy,” he said. On top of that, IPU Secretary-General Ambassador Anda Filip said the assembly would provide an important platform for parliamentary diplomacy, including between lawmakers from countries that may not have strong bilateral relations. “Indeed, one of the greatest values of the IPU is its capacity to bring people together in political dialogue to build relationships even among MPs from countries that perhaps do not have strong bilateral relations,” Ambassador Filip said. She said the assembly would also provide space for bilateral engagements alongside the official programme. “Diplomacy, parliamentary diplomacy, is an area that we believe in quite a lot and in the margins of the official programme of the assembly there will be a multitude of bilateral meetings,” she said.