Geneva, 12 June 2019
Dear Madam President,
Dear Mr. President,
We are pleased to inform you that the Fifth World Conference of Speakers of
Parliament will be held from 17 to 21 August 2020, at the United Nations Office in
Vienna (Women Speakers Summit on 17-18
August, followed by the World Speakers’
Conference on 18-21 August). A formal letter of invitation, accompanied by practical
information, will follow in the coming weeks. In the meantime, we would be grateful if
you could pencil in this major global summit in your busy agendas.
As you are aware, since 2000 the IPU, in close cooperation with the United Nations,
has been convening the World Conference of Speakers of Parliament every five
years, with a view to strengthening parliamentary democracy and advancing the
parliamentary dimension to international cooperation. Traditionally, the Speakers’
Conferences have informed the outcomes of the corresponding UN Summits, from the
Millennium Declaration of 2000 when for the first time Heads of State and Government
acknowledged the need for systematic cooperation between the United Nations,
parliaments and the IPU, to the SDG Summit of 2015, where parliaments played a
major role in helping to shape the new 2030 Development Agenda (in particular in
connection to SDG 16 on peace, justice and strong and effective institutions at all
levels).
A Preparatory Committee composed of fellow Speakers of Parliament designated by
their respective IPU Geopolitical Groups has been set up to guide preparations for the
summit next year—more
information, including a background note on the Speakers’
Conferences and other substantive reports, is available at
www.ipu.org/event/fifth-
world-conference-speakers-parliaments.
The Preparatory Committee will meet again
in mid-November to examine and take decisions regarding the format, content and
expected outcome of the 2020 Speakers’ Conference. In order to make the process as
inclusive as possible, we are inviting all Speakers to kindly share their ideas and
suggestions, if possible by 15 September at the latest.
We thank you for your attention to the above and look forward to working closely with
you towards a very successful and meaningful World Conference of Speakers of
Parliament in Vienna next year.
Yours sincerely,
Gabriela Cuevas Barron
President
Martin Chungong
Secretary General