Commonwealth Parliamentary Association

The Commonwealth Parliamentary Association, (CPA) previously known as the Empire Parliamentary Association, is an organisation, British by foundation, which works to support good governance, democracy and human rights.

As of 1989, the CPA acknowledges as Patron - the Head of the Commonwealth, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II - and as Vice-Patron, by rotation Heads of State of the Commonwealth national government hosting its upcoming Annual Conference. The association's supreme authority is the General Assembly, constituted by delegates to the annual Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference. The business and activities of the CPA are managed by an Executive Committee, which reports to the General Assembly. The CPA's funds are derived from membership fees paid by its branches, as well as from two trust funds and benefactors.

The official publication of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association is The Parliamentarian, the Journal of Commonwealth Parliaments. The organisation administers the Commonwealth Women Parliamentarians (CWP), a group across the Commonwealth which promotes greater representation for women in Parliament.

The Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA) currently has 181 branches and is divided into nine regions - Africa; Asia; Australia; British Islands and Mediterranean; Canada; Caribbean, Americas and Atlantic; India; Pacific, and South-East Asia. The CPA Secretariat is based in London.

History

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CPA African Branch meeting, 2014

It was founded as the Empire Parliamentary Association in 1911, with its first branches being Australia, Canada, Newfoundland, New Zealand, South Africa and the United Kingdom, the latter branch administering the association as a whole. In 1948 the association changed its name to the current Commonwealth Parliamentary Association, and invited all branches to participate in the organisation's administration.

Officers

The current Chair of the CPA Executive Committee is Rt Hon. Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury, Speaker of Jatiyo Sangsad Bhaban of Bangladesh, who succeeded Rt Hon. Sir Alan Haselhurst MP (2011 – 2014), formerly Chairman of Ways and Means of the UK Parliament.

The current Vice-Chair is Hon. Datuk Seri Dr. Ronald Kiandee, Deputy Speaker of House of Representatives from the Parliament of Malaysia.

The current Treasurer is Hon. Request Muntanga, Member of Parliament of Zambia.

The current Chair of the Commonwealth Women Parliamentarians is Rt Hon. Rebecca Kadaga, Speaker of Parliament of Uganda.

Secretaries-General

The CPA's present Acting Secretary-General & Director of Finance and Administration is Joe Omorodion MP.

Previous Secretaries-General have been: Dr. William F. Shija, former Minister Tanzania Parliament (2007 – 2014); Hon. Denis Marshall, former Minister New Zealand Parliament (2002 – 2006); Hon. Arthur Donahoe, former Speaker Nova Scotia House of Assembly (1993 – 2001); Hon. Dr. David Tonkin, former Premier South Australia (1986 – 1992); Sir Robin Vandervelt from South Africa (1961 – 1985); Sir Howard d’Egville (1949 - 1960).

Members

Members of the CPA are listed below. Both national and subnational parliaments are included.

Members	National and Sub-National Parliaments
Alderney	States of Alderney
Anguilla	Parliament of Anguilla
Antigua and Barbuda	Parliament of Antigua and Barbuda
Australia	Parliament of Australia. Australia National Branch has withdrawn from the CPA. Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly, Parliament of New South Wales, Northern Territory Legislative Assembly, Parliament of Queensland, Parliament of South Australia, Parliament of Tasmania, Parliament of Victoria, Parliament of Western Australia
The Bahamas	Parliament of the Bahamas
Bangladesh	Parliament of Bangladesh
Barbados	Parliament of Barbados
Belize	Parliament of Belize
Bermuda	Parliament of Bermuda
Botswana	Parliament of Botswana
British Virgin Islands	House of Assembly of the British Virgin Islands
Cameroon	National Assembly of Cameroon
Canada	Parliament of Canada Legislative Assembly of Alberta, Legislative Assembly of British Columbia, Legislative Assembly of Manitoba, Legislative Assembly of New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador House of Assembly, Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories, Nova Scotia House of Assembly, Legislative Assembly of Nunavut, Legislative Assembly of Ontario, Legislative Assembly of Prince Edward Island, National Assembly of Quebec, Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan, Yukon Legislative Assembly
Cayman Islands	Legislative Assembly of the Cayman Islands
Cook Islands	Parliament of the Cook Islands
Cyprus	House of Representatives of Cyprus
Dominica	House of Assembly of Dominica
Falkland Islands	Legislative Assembly of the Falkland Islands
Fiji	Parliament of Fiji
Ghana	Parliament of Ghana
Gibraltar	Gibraltar Parliament
Grenada	Parliament of Grenada
Guernsey	States of Guernsey
Guyana	National Assembly of Guyana
India	Parliament of India Andhra Pradesh Legislature, Arunachal Pradesh Legislative Assembly, Assam Legislative Assembly, Bihar Legislative Assembly, File:Seal of Chhattisgarh.png Chhattisgarh Legislative Assembly, Delhi Legislative Assembly, Goa Legislative Assembly, Gujarat Legislative Assembly, Haryana Legislative Assembly, File:Himachal Pradesh seal.svg Himachal Pradesh Legislative Assembly, Jammu and Kashmir Legislature, File:Seal of Jharkhand 2.png Jharkhand Legislative Assembly, Karnataka Legislative Assembly, Kerala Legislature, File:Madhya Pradesh emblem.jpg Madhya Pradesh Legislative Assembly, Maharashtra Legislative Assembly, Manipur Legislative Assembly, Meghalaya Legislative Assembly, Mizoram Legislative Assembly, File:Seasl of Nagaland.svg Nagaland Legislative Assembly, Odisha Legislative Assembly, Puducherry Legislative Assembly, Punjab Legislative Assembly, File:Rajasthan emblem.png Rajasthan Legislative Assembly, Sikkim Legislative Assembly, Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly, Telangana Legislative Assembly, Tripura Legislative Assembly, File:Seal of Uttarakhand.svg Uttarakhand Legislative Assembly, Uttar Pradesh Legislative Assembly, West Bengal Legislative Assembly
Isle of Man	High Court of Tynwald
Jamaica	Parliament of Jamaica
Jersey	States of Jersey
Kenya	Parliament of Kenya
Kiribati	House of Assembly (Kiribati)
Lesotho	Parliament of Lesotho
Malawi	Parliament of Malawi
Malaysia	Parliament of Malaysia Johor State Legislative Assembly, Kedah State Legislative Assembly, Kelantan State Legislative Assembly, Malacca State Legislative Assembly, Negeri Sembilan State Legislative Assembly, Pahang State Legislative Assembly, Penang State Legislative Assembly, Perak State Legislative Assembly, Perlis State Legislative Assembly, Sabah State Legislative Assembly, Sarawak State Legislative Assembly, Selangor State Legislative Assembly, Terengganu State Legislative Assembly
Maldives	People's Majlis
Malta	Parliament of Malta
Mauritius	Parliament of Mauritius
Montserrat	Legislative Council of Montserrat
Mozambique	Parliament of Mozambique
Namibia	Parliament of Namibia
Nauru	Parliament of Nauru
New Zealand	Parliament of New Zealand
Nigeria	Parliament of Nigeria Abia State Adamawa State, Akwa Ibom State, Anambra State, Bauchi State, Bayelsa State, Benue State Borno State, Cross River State, Delta State, Ebonyi State, Edo State, Ekiti State, Enugu State, Gombe State, Imo State, Jigawa State, Kaduna State, Kano State, Katsina State, Kebbi State, Kogi State Kwara State, Lagos State, Nasarawa State, Niger State, Ogun State, Ondo State, Osun State, Oyo State, Plateau State, Rivers State, Sokoto State, Taraba State, Yobe State Zamfara State
Niue	Niue Assembly
Pakistan	Parliament of Pakistan Provincial Assembly of Balochistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly, Provincial Assembly of the Punjab, Provincial Assembly of Sindh
Papua New Guinea	Parliament of Papua New Guinea File:Flag of Bougainville.svg Bougainville House of Representatives
Rwanda	Parliament of Rwanda
Samoa	Legislative Assembly of Samoa
Seychelles	Parliament of Seychelles
Sierra Leone	Parliament of Sierra Leone
Singapore	Parliament of Singapore
Solomon Islands	National Parliament of the Solomon Islands
South Africa	Parliament of South Africa Eastern Cape Provincial Legislature, Free State Legislature, Gauteng Provincial Legislature, KwaZulu-Natal Legislature, Limpopo Legislature, Mpumalanga Provincial Legislature, Northern Cape Provincial Legislature, North West Provincial Legislature, Western Cape Provincial Parliament
Sri Lanka	Parliament of Sri Lanka
Saint Helena	Legislative Council of Saint Helena
Saint Kitts and Nevis. Also known as Saint Christopher and Nevis.	National Assembly (Saint Kitts and Nevis) Nevis Island Assembly
Saint Lucia	Parliament of Saint Lucia
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines	House of Assembly of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
Swaziland	Parliament of Swaziland
Tanzania	Parliament of Tanzania Zanzibar House of Representatives
Tonga	Legislative Assembly of Tonga
Trinidad and Tobago	Parliament of Trinidad and Tobago
Turks and Caicos Islands	Turks and Caicos Islands House of Assembly
Tuvalu	Parliament of Tuvalu
Uganda	Parliament of Uganda
United Kingdom	Parliament of the United Kingdom Scotland, Scottish Parliament Wales, Welsh Assembly Northern Ireland, Northern Ireland Assembly
Vanuatu	Parliament of Vanuatu - CPA Branch currently in suspension.
Zambia	Parliament of Zambia

Additional Links

• The CPA Secretariat Headquarters CPA HQ - you will also find links to The Parliamentarian.
• The Africa Region of the CPA CPA Africa
• The British Islands and Mediterranean Region and UK Branch of the CPA is based in Westminster CPA UK
• The Canadian Region of the CPA CPA Canada
• The Australia Region of the CPA CPA Australia
• The Caribbean, Americas and Atlantic Region of the CPA CPA CAA
• American Institute of Parliamentarians - similar association for United States.
• See also: Canadian Parliamentary Review

References

Notes

• www.oxfordjournals.org

External links

• Official site