The Commonwealth Associa­tion of Public Accounts Com­mittee (CAPAC) has been working with Pacific parliaments and with our development part­ners to strengthen a parliament’s oversight functions of the execu­tive.

The statement was made by the Speaker of Parliament Ratu Epeli Nailatikau during the opening of the CAPAC Pacific Regional work­shop at the Holiday Inn in Suva on Tuesday.

Delegates from Australia, the au­tonomous region of Bougainville, Fiji, Kiribati, New Zealand, Niue, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, United Kingdom and Vanuatu are participating in the three-day workshop.

The meeting aims to enhance tech­nical skills and develop parliamen­tary capacity for effective financial scrutiny including strengthening networks and contacts in the re­gion.

Ratu Epeli said the workshop demonstrated the commitment of the Commonwealth Association to promote the democratic values to which we all subscribe.

“A vision which seeks to invigor­ate and redefine the association’s position as a leader in identify­ing and promoting benchmarks of good governance and the endur­ing values of the commonwealth,” Ratu Epeli said.

“The values to which we all adhere and which have been enshrined in the commonwealth charter are de­mocracy, rule of law, human rights, good governance, gender equality, importance of young people, pro­tecting the environment and sus­tainable development goals, among others.

“These values are underpinned by the separation of powers between the three branches of government: the legislature, the executive and the judiciary.

“They are guarantors of the rule of law, the promotion and protec­tion of fundamental rights and a determinant of a country’s adher­ence to good governance.

“Public Accounts Committees in particular need to have the means to exchange information and ideas to enable them to keep up to date with important developments, changing standards and best prac­tices as they emerge.

“I believe that the most effective way in which the committee perfor­mance in every jurisdiction can be improved is by developing ways to exchange information,” Ratu Epeli said.

The workshop will conclude today.

Edited by Percy Kean

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