At the invitation of the National Assembly of Cameroon, the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) and the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) are holding, from today in Yaoundé, a three-day seminar for African Parliaments on sustainable development, water and desertification. The seminar will seek to build the capacity of African parliaments to deal with sensitive environmental issues such as drought and desertification.

The IPU-UNITAR seminar should also help enhance awareness in the targeted parliaments of international policy, goals and legislation related to water conservation and management and lead to more effective involvement of parliamentarians in efforts to combat drought and desertification as well as ensure rational management of water resources. In this way parliamentarians can ensure that national and global efforts are commensurate with the needs and conditions of their constituents.

Last year, experts and legislators from over 70 countries met in Paris to discuss the role that parliaments and parliamentarians can play in the implementation of the Millennium Development Goals and in advancing the agenda for sustainable development. The Paris Conference addressed issues such as water, climate change and energy. It marked the beginning of an initiative launched by the IPU and UNITAR to strengthen the capacities of parliaments in the field of sustainable development. The Yaoundé meeting is the second in a series of seminars that have been launched by the IPU and UNITAR. The first took place in Beirut in November 2005 and targeted parliaments of the Arab region.

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Established in 1889 and with its Headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland, the IPU, the oldest multilateral political organisation, currently brings together 146 affiliated parliaments and seven regional assemblies as associate members. The world organisation of parliaments has an Office in New York, which acts as its Permanent Observer at the United Nations. Established by the United Nations General Assembly in 1965, UNITAR's purpose is to enhance the effectiveness of the United Nations through appropriate training and research. It designs and holds approximately 150 programmes, seminars and workshops every year for some 8,000 participants throughout the world.
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Contact for additional information or interviews:

Mrs. Luisa Ballin, IPU Information Officer 5, ch. du Pommier, CH - 1218 Le Grand-Saconnex / Geneva Phone: +41 22 919 41 16 Fax: +41 22 919 41 60 E-mail: lb@mail.ipu.org or cbl@mail.ipu.org Mr. Martin Chungong, Director of the Division for the Promotion of Democracy Phone: +41 22 919 41 30 E-mail: mch@mail.ipu.org. Ms. Laurence Marzal Phone: + 237 662 34 55 E-mail: lm@mail.ipu.org. UNITAR: Ms. Sofia Khetib Phone: +41 22 917 85 19 E-mail: sofia.khetib@unitar.org.