A TEAM from the Victorian Parliament in Australia is in the country to train the country’s parliamentary officials on better understanding parliamentary procedures.
Parliament of Victoria communications and public engagement specialist Andres Lomp, who is providing the training, said capacity building was important for Fiji’s democracy.
“I was asked by the Fijian Parliament and the United Nations Development Program to come to Fiji to do some capacity building for the new Parliament,” Mr Lomp said.
He said the team had been streamlining procedures to provide deeper understanding to local staff members on the parliamentary chambers work.
“We will also have a procedural expert to look at procedures for parliament sittings to ensure that the chamber works properly.
“We will also assist in developing development procedures and streamline the existing ones — we are working closely with the engagement team here.”
Mr Lomp said it was important for any Parliament to reach out to the community through a well-informed media.
“I think each Parliament develops procedures that suits their needs.
“The Fiji Parliament has established strong procedures — it has got standing orders in place, what we have been doing is providing some of the experience to work with standing orders and training on committee procedures.”
He said the team also noted that the Fijian Parliament was engaging effectively with the community.