17 Jun 2019

A delegation of German members of parliament paid a courtesy visit to Speaker of National Assembly, Ms Gladys Kokorwe recently.

The objective of the visit was to engage and build closer relations between the parliaments of Botswana and Germany.

Ms Kokorwe indicated that Botswana parliament was ready to strengthen friendly relations and cooperation with parliament of Germany, adding that Botswana was ready to have formalised relations between the two parliaments.

As a member of SADC to which Parliament of Botswana was a member of SADC Parliamentary Forum, Ms Kokorwe said Botswana welcomed initiatives to build closer relations with other parliaments.

She also noted that the German delegation’s visit would serve to strengthen the already existing relations between the peoples of Botswana and Germany.  She said building close working relationships between the two parliaments included more learning on the best practices from each other.

Although Parliament of Botswana is small in terms of numbers, Ms Kokorwe said it had challenges of women representatives.

She said to have six women parliamentarians was worrying, adding that she hopes this  changed in the future.

For his part, head of the German delegation, Mr Martin Rabanus, said the exchange gave them an opportunity to get an understanding of both parliaments.

He said international cooperation could only be achieved through forums like these, adding that their meeting with the speaker could strengthen relations. ENDS