Motion of Thanks,closing ceremony of seminar on Parliament Administration at the Institute for political studies in Japan,JICA,march 3-12,2007

Dear representatives of the JICA;
Dear representatives of the IPSJ;
Dear representative of the JICE;
Dear colleagues;

We have now reached the end of our seminar on the management of Parliament. This seminar held for approximately ten days, has constituted an opportunity, for some, to exchange their experience and views; and for others, to acquire more knowledge on parliamentary administration.

On this closing ceremony, let me take this opportunity to thank, on behalf of the Pan African Parliament, on behalf of the delegation and my own behalf, all the institutions and eminent personalities who have contributed, directly or indirectly, to the great fulfillment of the objectives of this Seminar.

I acknowledge with gratitude the common political concern of the initiators of this cooperation, namely the President of the House of Councilors, the President of the House of Representatives and the President of the Pan African Parliament; who made the first move for the construction of a bridge for cooperation between the Japanese Diet and the Pan African Parliament.

I also seize this opportunity to express our gratefulness to the Japanese International Cooperation Agency (JICA) who successfully contributed to the efficient organisation of this Seminar. We appreciate, to a great extend, all kind of support given to the delegation at the Osaka and Tokyo Centers, including the Kyoto afternoon Tour which broaden the views of the delegation on the Japanese culture.

Our gratitude is also extended to the Japanese International Cooperation Center (JICE), for their role as mediator between JICA and us. We salute their involvement in making this co-operation a reality. The role played by the training coordinator, our able and dear Takao Mori San, who always availed himself to fulfill the needs, interests and complaints of the delegation, is gratefully acknowledged.

Finally, I present the gratitude of the delegation to the Institute for Political Studies in Japan (IPSJ) for its foremost contribution as a brain to this Seminar. The contents and accuracy of the lectures were well presented and we trust are of high value.

We convey our thanks to Prof. Rei SHIRATORI who has been the focal point in all these lectures. We thank him for availing himself to share, throughout this Seminar, his knowledge and wisdom with us. He is an inspiration to many of us.

We also thank the Secretary General of the IPSJ, Satoshi KIMURA san, who was like a guide and always escorted us wherever we were expected.

Thank you to all eminent Professors, who agreed to quench our thirst with their fountain of knowledge and wisdom.

Dear friends,

At the end of this Seminar, which hopefully will be the first of a series to be organized in the near future, we have identified the responsibilities of each party for the strengthening of collaboration between PAP, the Japanese Government and other Japanese organizations.

In the light of this, we would appreciate, for future collaboration, the involvement of all parties in the preparation of focal points of discussions. Pan African Parliament hope to benefit more on direct technical meetings and exchanges with specialized Departments of the Diet, in order to enhance its managerial capacity.

While reiterating our cordial thanks for the warmthful welcome and care we were given during our stay in Japan, we kindly urge you to transmit our heartfelt gratitude to all those who did not manage to be present at this closing ceremony.

Viva the co-operation between Japan and Africa;
Viva the co-operation between the Diet and the PAP;
Viva the JICA;
Viva the IPSJ;
Viva the JICE.

Thank you.