President Goodluck Jonathan Thursday in Abuja urged African legislatures to give greater attention to enacting laws that will further empower and enhance the living conditions of the people they represent.
Speaking after receiving a briefing from the Senate Leader, Senator Victor Ndoma-Egba on the Africa Legislative Summit which is scheduled to hold in Abuja from November 10th-13th, 2013, President Jonathan said that legislation must be seen as a vital democratic tool that enables speedy and inclusive development.
The President remarked that the legislative process will only become truly meaningful to the vast majority of Africans when it begins to positively address their needs and aspirations.
“As the first of its kind in Africa, we look forward to the legislative summit with the expectation that it will x-ray and analyze issues that will help the separate arms of government to work in concert to bring the continent out of its present predicaments,’’ President Jonathan said.
The President also urged participants at the summit to brainstorm on how to make laws that will promote economic growth and boost employment.
Senator Ndoma-Egba who chairs the Joint Steering Committee for the Summit, told the President that its theme will be: “Emerging Legislatures in Africa: Challenges and Opportunities.”
He said that the summit was instituted as a platform for legislators and stakeholders in the African continent to deliberate on current issues and developments relating to the effective functioning of parliaments in Africa.
The Joint Steering Committee for the Summit includes representatives of the National Assembly, the ECOWAS Parliament and the National Institute of Legislative Studies.
