Speaker of Zambia receives CPA Award

SPEAKER OF ZAMBIA RECEIVES COMMONWEALTH PARLIAMENTARIAN OF THE YEAR 2023 AWARD IN GHANA

The Commonwealth Parliamentarian of the Year 2023 Awards were announced at the 66th Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference in Accra, Ghana. Hon. Nelly Mutti, MP, Speaker of the National Assembly of Zambia was announced as the recipient of the 2023 Commonwealth Parliamentarian of the Year Award in recognition of her parliamentary service and her commitment to transparency in parliamentary processes.

The Speaker of Zambia said in her acceptance speech: “I wish to dedicate this award to the over 3,000 women Parliamentarians of the Commonwealth, as we strive collectively to change the narrative in our Parliaments by ensuring that course for gender parity is attained in all our national and sub-national Legislatures. Our efforts should be anchored on ensuring that proportional representation and other forms of affirmative action such as the quota system for women’s representation are enshrined in our national constitutions. In order to achieve this desire, our male counterparts are key in the process. I, therefore, wish to implore our male Parliamentarians to support women in their respective Legislatures so that together we can enhance the representative, legislative and oversight functions of our Parliaments and address the challenges faced by the citizens of our countries.”

The other award recipients were: Hon. Ntombi Lentheng Mekgwe, MPL, Speaker of the Gauteng Provincial Legislature in South Africa who received the 2023 Parliamentary Equality and Diversity Award; Hon. Myrna Driedger, MLA, Speaker of the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba in Canada who was awarded the 2023 Parliamentarian Life-time Achievement Award; and Hon. Tanya August-Hanson, MLC, Member of the Isle of Man Legislative Council who was recognised with the 2023 New Parliamentarian Award.

The Commonwealth Parliamentarian of the Year 2023 Awards were announced at the 66th Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference in Accra, Ghana. Hon. Nelly Mutti, MP, Speaker of the National Assembly of Zambia was announced as the recipient of the 2023 Commonwealth Parliamentarian of the Year Award in recognition of her parliamentary service and her commitment to transparency in parliamentary processes. The Speaker of Zambia said in her acceptance speech: “I wish to dedicate this award to the over 3,000 women Parliamentarians of the Commonwealth, as we strive collectively to change the narrative in our Parliaments by ensuring that course for gender parity is attained in all our national and sub-national Legislatures. Our efforts should be anchored on ensuring that proportional representation and other forms of affirmative action such as the quota system for women’s representation are enshrined in our national constitutions. In order to achieve this desire, our male counterparts are key in the process. I, therefore, wish to implore our male Parliamentarians to support women in their respective Legislatures so that together we can enhance the representative, legislative and oversight functions of our Parliaments and address the challenges faced by the citizens of our countries.”

The other award recipients were: Hon. Ntombi Lentheng Mekgwe, MPL, Speaker of the Gauteng Provincial Legislature in South Africa who received the 2023 Parliamentary Equality and Diversity Award; Hon. Myrna Driedger, MLA, Speaker of the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba in Canada who was awarded the 2023 Parliamentarian Life-time Achievement Award; and Hon. Tanya August-Hanson, MLC, Member of the Isle of Man Legislative Council who was recognised with the 2023 New Parliamentarian Award.

The 2023 Awards were presented by Hon. Kate Doust, MLC, from the Parliament of Western Australia, who was the recipient of the first CPA Parliamentarian of the Year Award last year, and the CPA Chairperson, Hon. Ian Liddell-Grainger, MP (United Kingdom).

As part of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association’s mission to strengthen parliamentary democracy through the promotion of good governance and sharing best practice, the awards were launched in 2022 to recognise and highlight inspirational and active Parliamentarians for excelling in their field. Awards are open to nominees who are current Parliamentarians* across the Commonwealth. The next awards will be open for nominees in 2024.

The CPA Secretary-General, Stephen Twigg said: “The Commonwealth Parliamentarian of the Year Awards aligns to our strategic objective of promoting the values of the Commonwealth, parliamentary democracy and sustainable development to a wide audience. Through these annual awards, the CPA will recognise and highlight the invaluable contributions that Parliamentarians are making to their local communities and both nationally and internationally within the Commonwealth.”

* Nominees should be sitting Members of Parliament in a Commonwealth Legislature or have been a sitting Member of Parliament in a Commonwealth Legislature in the award period. The award can be made posthumously. Please check the CPA website for full nomination criteria.