Commonwealth Parliamentarians who, irrespective of gender, race, religion or culture, being united by community of interest, respect for the rule of law and individual rights and freedoms, and by pursuit of the positive ideals of parliamentary democracy, have established the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association.

(Preamble to the CPA Constitution)

The CPA Constitution provides the authority on the aims of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association, an outline of the respective governance structures and a number of rules and procedures for the functioning of the Association. 

Drafted by Mr John Sweetman, former Clerk of Committees in the UK House of Commons, the current Constitution of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association was first approved and adopted by the General Assembly on 6 September 1993, at the 39th Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference in Limassol, Cyprus.

The Constitution has since seen a number of amendments following its adoption, the most recent of which was at the 65th Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference in Halifax, Canada on 25 August 2022.

The Commonwealth Parliamentary Association has, however, had a number of previous constitutions across its history, the first of which was approved and adopted on 18 July 1911, thereby founding the then Empire Parliamentary Association.

Please find a pdf copy of the CPA Constitution here.

The General Assembly, the Association’s supreme authority, is constituted by delegates to the Annual Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference.

The General Assembly has the ultimate authority to determine the policy and management of the Association including the annual membership fee and other financial obligations of the Members of the Association; the Regions of the Association and the allocation of each Branch to a Region; the number of Regional Representatives; the venue within the Commonwealth of each plenary conference, and the number of delegates and officials which each Branch shall be entitled to send to a plenary conference.

Attendees at the General Assembly usually include the Officers of the Association; Regional Representatives and Branch delegates to the plenary conference at which the meeting of the General Assembly is held. Other persons may be invited by the Association to attend the General Assembly as observers.

The Constitution of the CPA vests in an Executive Committee the control and management of the activities and business of the Association. The CPA Executive Committee meets just prior to and just after the General Assembly, to which it reports, and the CPA Executive Committee holds a second meeting in another Commonwealth country midway between General Assemblies.

The CPA Executive Committee consists of approximately 36 Members led by the Chairperson of the CPA and comprising the Officers of the Association (who include the Chairperson of the Commonwealth Women Parliamentarians (CWP), the CPA Small Branches Chairperson and the Commonwealth Parliamentarians with Disabilities Chairperson) and three Regional Representatives from each Region, except the CPA Africa Region which, as the largest Region in the Commonwealth, has six Regional Representatives.

The CPA Executive Committee also has two Honorary members - the CPA President and the CPA Vice-President. These roles are traditionally held by the Presiding Officers of the 'next' and 'next but one' hosts of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference.

As the CPA is a UK Registered charity, the CPA Executive Committee act as the charity's legal trustees.  

The CPA Executive Committee is supported by four subcommittees: CPA Coordinating Committee, CPA Audit Committee, Planning & Review Subcommittee and the Finance Subcommittee.

The CPA Coordinating Committee is a Subcommittee of the CPA Executive Committee comprising six of the Officers of the Association - these are the CPA Chairperson, CPA Vice-Chairperson, CPA Treasurer, the Chairperson of the Commonwealth Women Parliamentarians (CWP), the CPA Small Branches Chairperson and the Commonwealth Parliamentarians with Disabilities (CPwD) Chairperson. 

The CPA Coordinating Committee is tasked with supporting the CPA Headquarters Secretariat and the CPA Executive Committee on a range of matters. 

The CPA Executive Committee has the power to create adhoc working groups with a remit to focus on specific issues of the Association. These can range from topics on the status of the Association, premises of the CPA Headquarters Secretariat or specialist thematic topics like Human Rights, etc. The working groups have a limited life-span and they will report their findings to the CPA Executive Committee to take forward. 

The Commonwealth Parliamentary Association is composed of approximately 180 Branches formed in Parliament and Legislatures in Commonwealth countries and territories which subscribe to parliamentary democracy. The Members of the Legislature in which a Branch is formed are entitled to become Members of that Branch. For a Branch to qualify it must be a legislative body, thus both national and state or provincial Parliaments as well as the Legislatures of dependent territories may form Branches of the CPA.
 
The Presiding Officers of Legislative Chambers are normally the CPA Branch Presidents, while the Leaders of the parliamentary parties are Branch Vice-Presidents. The Clerk or Secretary-General of the Legislature usually acts as the Secretary of the Branch.
 
Every CPA Branch is autonomous and the affairs of most CPA Branches are managed by a Branch Executive Committee, elected annually by Members and usually representative of all main parties or groups. Many CPA Branches require their Members to pay an annual subscription and many permit Members to apply for associate status on ceasing to belong to the Legislature.
 
CPA Branches are currently grouped geographically into nine Commonwealth Regions for representation on the CPA Executive Committee and for the organisation of regional conferences and seminars on parliamentary practice and procedure. Click here for an A to Z list of CPA Branches.

The nine Regions of the CPA are: Africa; Asia; Australia; British Islands and Mediterranean (BIM); Canada; Caribbean, Americas and the Atlantic (CAA); India; Pacific; and South-East Asia. 

To access the websites for the Regions of the CPA please click on the following links (opens in new window):

• Africa
• Asia
• Australia
• British Islands and Mediterranean
• Canada
• Caribbean, Americas and Atlantic
• India
• Pacific
• South-East Asia

The CPA President was appointed on behalf of the CPA Barbados Branch ahead of the 68th Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference, due to be held in October 2025 in Barbados.

The President of the Association is typically the Presiding Officer of the next CPC host Branch. They act as the honorary head of the Association and their duties are to preside over the CPA General Assembly and to Chair the Elections Committee.

Reginald Farley is a Barbadian politician and accountant who has served has President of the senate of Barbados since 2020.

He is also the first Senate President after Barbados became a republic.

The CPA Vice-President is typically the Presiding Officer of the host Branch of the next but one Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference. 

The role and authority of the Chairperson of the CPA Executive Committee emanates from the Constitution of the CPA. As a document it serves to identify the aims, responsibilities and divisions of power between the various bodies of the Association. Although not the most supreme body of the Association, the CPA Executive Committee is empowered to lead and manage the Association’s affairs and is accountable to the General Assembly of the Association.

The role of the Chairperson is to be a spokesperson for the Association at relevant forums; provide leadership and direction to the CPA Executive Committee; and provide ongoing support and guidance to the CPA Secretary-General.

A Zambian Parliamentarian with a parliamentary career spanning sixteen years, Hon. Dr Christopher Kalila, MP currently represents Lukulu Constituency, chairs the Parliamentary Committee on Health, Community Development and Social Services and serves on the Committee on Cabinet Affairs.

He also currently serves as Branch Representative for the CPA Zambia Branch. He has been a member of the CPA for as long as he has been a Parliamentarian and previously served as Central Africa Sub Regional
Representative from 2021 to 2022. He, therefore, brings a wealth of experience as a Parliamentarian.

Prior to his political career, Hon. Dr Christopher Kalila served as a medical doctor and administrator in Zambia’s public and private sectors for over a decade.

* Members elected to complete the terms of Chairpersons who ceased to be Parliamentarians during their terms of office and so relinquished their CPA positions as required by the Constitution or who died in office.

The position of CPA Vice-Chairperson is for a term of one year and the holder is also a Member of the CPA Coordinating Committee. The CPA Vice-Chairperson is chosen from within the CPA Executive Committee and the Member remains as a Regional Representative for their CPA Region.

Hon. Carmel Sepuloni is a New Zealand politician who served as the 20th Deputy Prime Minister of New Zealand.

A member of the Labour Party, she was first elected to Parliament in 2008 for a three-year term as a list Member of Parliament and was re-elected as MP for Kelston in 2014.

During the 65th CPA General Assembly which took place at the 65th Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference in Canada, Members of the CPA endorsed the appointment of Hon. Shri Anurag Sharma, MP (India Union) as the new CPA Treasurer (2022-2025). 

The CPA Treasurer, who is a Member of the Association nominated by the CPA Executive Committee, is appointed for three years by the General Assembly and works with the CPA Secretary-General and the CPA Headquarters Secretariat to monitor the finances of the Association. The CPA Treasurer also joins the Trustees board of the Association and oversees the Working Capital Fund and Conference Assistance Fund.

Hon. Shri Anurag Sharma, MP is a Bharatiya Janata Party politician and Member of Parliament in the Lok Sabha, Parliament of India from the Jhansi-Lalitpur constituency of Uttar Pradesh. He was first elected in 2019.

The Chairperson of the Commonwealth Women Parliamentarians (CWP) is Hon. Dr Zainab Gimba, MP, Federal Parliament of Nigeria.

The Chairperson of the Commonwealth Women Parliamentarians was elected for a three-year term at the CWP Business Meeting at the seventh triennial conference of the Commonwealth Women Parliamentarians (CWP) that took place in Halifax, Canada as part of the wider 65th Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference in 2022. 

More information on the CWP and its governance structure can be found here.  

Hon. Dr Zainab Gimba, MP is a Member of the Nigerian House of Representatives, representing Bama/Ngala/Kala Balge Federal Constituency of Borno State.

She was elected into the House in February 2019, had her preliminary and secondary education in Borno State and proceeded to the University of Maiduguri, Borno State, Nigeria where she obtained a Degree in Political Science and Public Administration and a Masters in Public Administration. At the University of Abuja, she also gained a Doctor of Philosophy in Public Administration and Policy Analysis. She is one of the longest serving Commissioners in Borno State, serving from 2011 to 2018 and the only female representative in Parliament from the state.

Recent Articles:

• The Parliamentarian 2023 Issue Three: 'Looking ahead to 66th CPC in Ghana: A gender quota perspective'
• The Parliamentarian 2023 Issue Two: 'Report from International Women's Day 2023 - constituency visits in Nigeria' 
• The Parliamentarian 2023 Issue One: '10th anniversary of the Commonwealth Charter'
  
• The Parliamentarian 2022 Issue Four: Gender dimensions of climate change
• The Parliamentarian 2021 Issue Four: Assessment of Gender and Disability in the Commonwealth
  
• The Parliamentarian 2020 Issue Two: Different Strategies, Resolutions Are In Place To Ensure Gender Equality, Women Empowerment

The CPA Small Branches Chairperson is a Member of the CPA Executive Committee and the CPA Coordinating Committee. 

Under CPA election rules only delegates from CPA Small Branches to the next Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference will take part in the vote to elect a new CPA Small Branches Chairperson. The election of the new Chairperson of Small Branches takes place at the CPA Small Branches Conference due to be held as part of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference. 

Of the over 180 Branches of the CPA, fifty Branches are classified as ‘Small Branches’ which are defined as jurisdictions having a population below 1 million people. The CPA Headquarters Secretariat works closely with CPA Small Branches in all Regions of the CPA to identify their unique needs and requirements in parliamentary strengthening, development and cooperation. 

More information on the CPA Small Branches network and its governance structure can be found here.  

Hon. Valerie Woods was first appointed to the National Assembly of Belize as a Senator from 2016 to 2019. She was then elected in December 2020 as the Speaker of the Belize House of Representatives.

She was the Chairperson of the Commonwealth Women Parliamentarians (CWP) for the Caribbean, Americas and Atlantic Region and served as the Vice-Chairperson of the CWP Steering Committee for 2022-2024 as well as the Acting CWP Chairperson for the 65th Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference in 2022.

Since being Speaker of the House of Representatives, she pursued professional development studies in parliamentary service through the CPA Academy and Gender Studies through the Caribbean Institute in Gender and Development through UWI.

As the Speaker, she has been a lead facilitator on the CPA’s Administrative Review of the Parliament and on the proposed draft changes to the Standing Orders.

Hon. Laura Kanushu, MP (Uganda) was elected as the CPwD Chairperson at the CPwD Regional Champions meeting held in the margins of the 65th Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference in Halifax, Canada in August 2022. In the same year, the CPwD Chairperson also became an Officer of the Association and a Members of the CPA Executive Committee.

Hon. Laura Kanushu is a Ugandan lawyer, politician and legislator. She represents people with disabilities in the Parliament of Uganda, where she is a member of the National Resistance Movement (NRM). Her career as a human rights advocate has focused especially for people with disabilities and she is the Executive Director of Legal Action for People with Disabilities (LAPD). She is an Executive Member of the Uganda Women's Parliamentary Association (UWOPA) as the people with disabilities representative.

In the Parliament of Uganda, she is a Member of the Committee on Rules, Privileges and Discipline and she is also a Member of the Gender Labour and Social Development Committee.

Recent Articles:

• The Parliamentarian 2023 Issue Three: 'A Decade of Progress and the Journey Ahead: Evaluating the Commonwealth's Performance on Disability Inclusion'
• The Parliamentarian 2023 Issue Two: 'Mental health disorders: An escalating form of disability'
• The Parliamentarian 2022 Issue Four: 'Reflections on Commonwealth Responses to Climate Change following COP27' and 'Urban sustainability in Uganda' 

The Secretary-General of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association is the Chief Executive Officer of the Association and, in that capacity, administers its affairs and manages the staff of its CPA Headquarters Secretariat.

They are primarily responsible for representing the Association and promoting its aims and objectives; maintaining close links with the CPA Branches and CPA Regions, and providing advice and guidance on their activities and management; acting as Secretary to meetings of the CPA Executive Committee, the General Assembly and the Plenary Conference, and undertaking such other duties as are assigned by the General Assembly, the CPA Executive Committee or its Chairperson.

Stephen Twigg began his term as the 8th Secretary-General of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA) from 1 August 2020.

The CPA Secretary-General, Stephen Twigg is a former UK Parliamentarian, who was previously elected to the Parliament of the United Kingdom as a Member of Parliament from 1997 to 2005 (Enfield Southgate) and from 2010 to 2019 (Liverpool West Derby). During his parliamentary career, he held several senior positions including Chairperson of the International Development Select Committee, Minister for Schools and a range of Shadow Front Bench roles.

Prior to his parliamentary career, Stephen Twigg studied at Balliol College, Oxford University, where he studied Philosophy, Politics and Economics. He became the youngest President of the National Union of Students in 1990-92 and was then elected as a Local Councillor in the London Borough of Islington.

Following the 2019 General Election, Stephen Twigg was instrumental in setting up the International Parliamentary Network for Education and was actively involved in parliamentary strengthening with both Global Partners Governance and the Westminster Foundation for Democracy (WFD).

In July 2023, he became Chair of the Council for Education in the Commonwealth (CEC).

Recent articles for The Parliamentarian:

• The Parliamentarian 2023 Issue Three: 'Reflections on CPA activities ahead of the 66th CPC in Ghana'
• The Parliamentarian 2023 Issue Two: 'Reaching every corner of our 'global' Commonwealth Family'
• The Parliamentarian 2023 Issue One: 'The Commonwealth in 21st century and the role of the CPA'
  
• The Parliamentarian 2022 Issue Four: 'Reflections on CPA activities in 2022 and looking ahead to 2023'
• The Parliamentarian 2022 Issue Three: 'Reflections on the 65th Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference in Canada'
• The Parliamentarian 2022 Issue Two: 'Bringing the Commonwealth together'
• The Parliamentarian 2022 Issue One: 'Global pandemic highlights need for different ways of working to deliver our common future'
• The Parliamentarian 2021 Issue Four: 'Disability is a key priority for the Commonwealth'
• The Parliamentarian 2021 Issue Three: 'Promoting education for all is at the heart of the Commonwealth'
• The Parliamentarian 2021 Issue Two: 'Delivering a Common Future: Connecting, Innovating, Transforming'
• The Parliamentarian 2021 Issue One: 'The Commonwealth can learn vital lessons from the unique challenges faced by the CPA Small Branches as the network marks its 40^th anniversary' 
• The Parliamentarian 2020 Issue Four: 'The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic across the world and identifying the CPA's strengths to best meet future challenges'
• The Parliamentarian 2020 Issue Three: 'The UN's Sustainable Development Goals are at the heart of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association's mission'

Mr Jarvis Matiya, Acting Secretary-General of the CPA, September 2019 to July 2020

Mr Akbar Khan, 7th Secretary-General of the CPA, barrister and former legal adviser, 2016 - 2019

Mr Joe Omorodion, Acting Secretary-General of the CPA, 2014 – 2015

Dr William F. Shija, 6th Secretary-General of the CPA, former Minister and Member of the Tanzania Parliament, 2007 – 2014

Mr Denis Marshall, 5th Secretary-General of the CPA, former Minister and Member of the New Zealand Parliament, 2002 – 2006

Mr Arthur Donahoe, 4th Secretary-General of the CPA, former Speaker of the Nova Scotia House of Assembly, 1993 – 2001

Dr David Tonkin, 3rd Secretary-General of the CPA, former Premier South Australia, 1986 – 1992

Sir Robin Vandervelt, 2nd Secretary-General of the CPA, 1961 – 1985

Sir Howard D’Egville, 1st Secretary-General of the CPA, 1949 - 1960