Africa-Press – Mozambique. More than 100 delegates, including parliamentary presidents from the member states of the Community of Portuguese Language Countries (CPLP), are participating in Maputo on Monday and Tuesday in the 14th CPLP Parliamentary Assembly, a body that Mozambique now leads.
According to information provided by Deputy Feliz Sílvia, head of the Assembly of the Republic of Mozambique group the within the CPLP, debates on the promotion of peace, democracy and good governance in CPLP countries have been scheduled for both days.
The meeting was opened this morning at the Joaquim Chissano International Conference Centre in Maputo by Mozambican president Daniel Chapo.
The Portuguese parliament will be represented during the next two days by Deputy Pedro Alves (PSD), from the Portuguese parliamentary delegation to that CPLP body.
Meetings of the presidents of the CPLP parliaments, the standing committees and networks of the CPLP Parliamentary Assembly and the presidents of the national parliamentary groups are also planned, according to the event program, which also includes the announcement of the host country for the body’s 15th meeting next year.
At the 14th Parliamentary Assembly of the Community of Portuguese-Speaking Countries (AP-CPLP), Mozambique will assume the rotating presidency of the body, succeeding Equatorial Guinea, in a mandate focused on peace and inclusion.
According to Feliz Sílvia, also head of the Mozambique Liberation Front (Frelimo, in power) parliamentary group during her two-year term, Mozambique will focus on strengthening democracy and the rule of law and monitoring the implementation of the mobility agreement between member countries, including holding periodic meetings between members to ensure agreements that facilitate mobility within the CPLP.
Sílvia also stated that Mozambique will focus on attracting private investment by harmonizing customs and tax rates among member countries and promoting the Portuguese language and culture of the CPLP countries.
On Sunday, Sílvia announced that members of the National Group of the Guinea-Bissau Parliament had cancelled their participation in the meeting.
“We had confirmation from Guinea-Bissau, but at the last minute they cancelled their participation, which would have been represented by the head of the national group,” she said.
Guinean President Umaro Sissoco Embaló dissolved the country’s parliament in December 2023, before the 12-month period established by the Constitution had elapsed, following the legislative elections won by the Inclusive Alliance Platform (PAI-Terra Ranka), led by the African Party for the Independence of Guinea and Cape Verde (PAIGC).
In July 2024, Mozambique hosted the 13th ordinary session of the AP-CPLP, chaired by Teresa Efua Asangono, president of Equatorial Guinea senate. Equatorial Guinea had expressed difficulty in hosting the annual event.
Founded in 1996, the CPLP comprises nine countries: Angola, Brazil, Cape Verde, Guinea-Bissau, Equatorial Guinea, Mozambique, Portugal, São Tomé and Príncipe, and East Timor.
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