The National Institute of Legislative and Democratic Studies (NILDS) and the Parliamentary Institute of the Republic of Benin (IPaB) have reiterated their partnership for the exchange of experiences and inter-parliamentary commitments for the advancement of legislation and democracy in the region.
The two institutes made their positions known at the opening ceremony of a five-day capacity building workshop they jointly organized for IPaB parliamentary staff, held on Monday at the NILDS headquarters in Abuja.
According to a NILDS statement, the workshop has as its theme: ‘Legislative processes and procedures, policy analysis, innovative management skills and strategic administrative techniques for sustainable development.’
In his keynote address, the Director-General of NILDS, Professor Abubakar Sulaiman, said the workshop underlined the institute’s commitment to promoting effective governance, legislative excellence and sustainable development across the African sub-region.
He explained that “the workshop is the result of a three-year memorandum of understanding signed by the two organizations, which borders on the exchange of experiences and interparliamentary commitments, towards democratic and legislative progress in their subregion.
“When analyzing the contemporary realities of the modern world, the persistent debates surrounding the relationship between governance and public policy cannot be ignored.
“The central question remains: how are the common goods of society obtained and distributed for the collective well-being of citizens?
“The answer to this question depends fundamentally on the effectiveness of policy instruments, the competence of policymakers and the efficiency of those tasked with implementing them.
“Therefore, it is safe to say that governance outcomes are a direct reflection of the quality and capacity of those who formulate and implement policies, and of the institutional systems that guide them. Good governance cannot thrive without strong policy formulation, strong legislative frameworks and efficient administrative structures.
“This training program has been carefully designed to strengthen participants’ understanding of legislative processes and procedures, deepen their understanding of policy formulation and analysis, and enhance their leadership and strategic management skills.
“At NILDS, we believe that capacity development is not an event but a continuous process of renewal and reflection. Through our long years of engagement with legislative institutions, evidence-based policy research and partnerships with regional and international parliaments, we have seen first-hand how targeted learning interventions like this can transform institutional performance and governance outcomes.”
For his part, the director of IPaB, Dr. Fatahau Djima, said that the collaboration of both institutes has improved the exchange of ideas for good governance of the two countries.
“This collaboration is crucial for both countries. This innovation is good for both parties to better develop our parliaments. Therefore, we are grateful to be here and we assure you that we will dedicate ourselves to learning from both parties, especially the Benin Republic Assembly.
“This will be beneficial and we are sure it will help the parliament and the people of Benin Republic. Therefore, I am grateful and sincerely grateful for this opportunity that you have given to other parliaments in Africa as your brothers and sisters.
“I want to say that the Parliament of Benin Republic will benefit greatly from this event, and this will also help African parliaments and the parliament as a whole to come together and create great things,” he added.
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