Over 100 delegates, including presidents of parliaments from the member states of the Community of Portuguese Language Countries (CPLP), are taking part today and Tuesday in the 14th Parliamentary Assembly in Maputo — an event Mozambique will chair moving forward.
According to MP Feliz Sílvia, head of Mozambique’s national delegation to the CPLP Parliamentary Assembly, the two-day agenda includes debates on promoting peace, democracy, and good governance across CPLP countries. The opening ceremony, held this morning at the Joaquim Chissano International Conference Center in Maputo, was officiated by Mozambique’s President, Daniel Chapo.
Portugal’s parliament is represented by MP Pedro Alves (Social Democratic Party, PSD), part of the Portuguese delegation to the CPLP Parliamentary Assembly. The program also includes meetings of CPLP parliamentary presidents, permanent commissions and networks of the CPLP Parliamentary Assembly, and sessions with the heads of national parliamentary groups. The event will conclude with the announcement of the next host country for the 15th assembly, to take place in 2026.
At this 14th CPLP Parliamentary Assembly (AP-CPLP), Mozambique assumes the rotating presidency, succeeding Equatorial Guinea, with a mandate focused on peace and inclusion.
Feliz Sílvia, who also heads the parliamentary bench of the ruling Frelimo party, stated that Mozambique’s two-year term will prioritize strengthening democracy and the rule of law, and monitoring the implementation of the mobility agreement among CPLP countries — including regular meetings to facilitate the signing of new agreements that promote greater mobility within the community.
Mozambique will also focus on attracting private investment, by pushing for harmonized customs and tax policies among CPLP members, and on promoting the Portuguese language and the shared cultures of the CPLP countries.
On Sunday, Feliz Sílvia announced that Guinea-Bissau’s parliamentary delegation canceled its participation at the last minute.
“We had confirmation from Guinea-Bissau, but at the last moment they canceled — the delegation was to be led by the head of the national group,” he said.
Guinea-Bissau’s President, Umaro Sissoco Embaló, dissolved the national parliament in December 2023, less than a year after legislative elections were won by the Inclusive Alliance Platform (PAI–Terra Ranka), led by the African Party for the Independence of Guinea and Cape Verde (PAIGC) — in breach of the Constitution’s 12-month minimum.
Mozambique had already hosted the 13th ordinary session of the AP-CPLP in July 2024, under the presidency of Teresa Efua Asangono, President of the Senate of Equatorial Guinea, which had expressed difficulty in hosting the annual event.
Founded in 1996, the CPLP comprises nine member states: Angola, Brazil, Cape Verde, Guinea-Bissau, Equatorial Guinea, Mozambique, Portugal, São Tomé and Príncipe, and Timor-Leste.
Source: Lusa
