Canadian Branch of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CCOM)

Room 325, Wellington Building

6:00 p.m.

To be eligible to vote at the AGM the deadline for membership for this association is 7 days before the meeting.

The purpose of the bilateral visits to Trinidad & Tobago and Barbados is to strengthen bonds with Commonwealth partners, in line with the Canadian Branch’s mandate to facilitate twinning between Canadian provincial-territorial legislatures and Caribbean legislatures. The delegation will discuss people-to-people ties, trade and investment, good governance and democracy, and climate change.

The Canadian Regional Seminar of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA), held since 1973, brought together delegates from the federal, provincial, and territorial CPA branches for annual training and exchanges related to their work as legislators. The 41st seminar explored themes relating to citizen engagement and protecting democratic institutions.

During this conference, 500 Parliamentarians, parliamentary staff and decision makers from across the Commonwealth came together for professional development, supportive learning and the sharing of best practices to address the critical issues facing today's parliaments. The conference theme was: Adaptation, engagement, and evolution of parliaments in a rapidly changing Commonwealth.

The CPA’s International Executive Committee (EXCO) meets twice a year, once in the spring and just prior to the Annual Conference. The Constitution of the CPA vests in an Executive Committee the control and management of the activities and business of the Association. The Executive Committee consists of approximately 35 Members led by the Chairperson of the CPA and comprising the Officers of the Association, and three Regional Representatives from each Region of CPA except Africa which, as a large Region, has six Regional Representatives. The Canadian Branch was hosting the EXCO meeting for the first time since 2004, which was held during the 50th Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference.

The purpose of the bilateral visit to New Zealand and Samoa was to strengthen bonds with our Commonwealth partners and exchange ideas of mutual significance. In particular, our parliamentarians built on and develop common areas of interest, including: people-to-people ties, governance and democracy, indigenous relations and reconciliation, climate change, and trade and investment.