Botswana National Assembly Speaker Dithapelo Lefoko Keorapetse believes the new SADC parliament will help citizens participate more in regional decisions. He shared these thoughts last Wednesday when President Duma Boko signed papers that make the SADC parliament an official part of the regional group. The Speaker mentioned how this parliament would push member countries to follow SADC rules for fair elections. He called the signing a happy moment that shows Botswana has long backed the SADC Parliamentary Forum.
The project took almost thirty years of hard work focused on spreading democracy across southern Africa. Keorapetse talked about Botswana working with the SADC PF since it started in 1997. He explained why the region needs this parliament to let citizens speak up about regional matters. He pointed out that other African regions already have similar groups, but southern Africa fell behind them.
The Speaker said these facts led to plans for a discussion assembly that would later become a full regional parliament. Botswana showed strong support when its Parliament voted yes to creating a SADC parliament back in 2010. The path to the recent signing faced many obstacles. Keorapetse described several teams that met with former Botswana leaders, including Presidents Festus Mogae, Seretse Khama Ian Khama, and Mokgweetsi Masisi.
The most recent team arrived in August 2024, led by Zimbabwe Speaker Jacob Francis Nzwidamilimo Mudenda, which really moved things forward. The Speaker happily announced that President Duma Gideon Boko agreed during their meeting that Botswana should sign the agreement right away. He praised this change as a major step toward deeper democracy, better citizen involvement in regional leadership, and more gender equality. Keorapetse emphasized that Botswana believes this transformation represents a crucial move toward stronger democratic rule.
The project took almost thirty years of hard work focused on spreading democracy across southern Africa. Keorapetse talked about Botswana working with the SADC PF since it started in 1997. He explained why the region needs this parliament to let citizens speak up about regional matters. He pointed out that other African regions already have similar groups, but southern Africa fell behind them.
The Speaker said these facts led to plans for a discussion assembly that would later become a full regional parliament. Botswana showed strong support when its Parliament voted yes to creating a SADC parliament back in 2010. The path to the recent signing faced many obstacles. Keorapetse described several teams that met with former Botswana leaders, including Presidents Festus Mogae, Seretse Khama Ian Khama, and Mokgweetsi Masisi.
The most recent team arrived in August 2024, led by Zimbabwe Speaker Jacob Francis Nzwidamilimo Mudenda, which really moved things forward. The Speaker happily announced that President Duma Gideon Boko agreed during their meeting that Botswana should sign the agreement right away. He praised this change as a major step toward deeper democracy, better citizen involvement in regional leadership, and more gender equality. Keorapetse emphasized that Botswana believes this transformation represents a crucial move toward stronger democratic rule.
