To: Presidents of IPU Groups
Geneva, 9 November 2020
Office of the
Secretary General
Dear Madam President,
Dear Mr. President,
A parliamentary administration is an indispensable pillar of every parliament. The staff of
these administrations provide elected members with essential services to allow them to
carry out their functions. Administrators are also the oil that keeps
each parliament’s
institutional machinery working smoothly.
How parliaments govern their administration
–
and how far they can do so autonomously
–
varies from country to country. In recent years, the IPU has carried out extensive
research on this topic through global surveys and in-depth case studies. I am pleased to
share with you the fruits of these efforts in our recently published
Comparative research
paper on parliamentary administration,
available at:
www.ipu.org/resources/publications/reference/2020-09/comparative-research-paper-
parliamentary-administration
The paper includes a global overview of parliamentary administrations based on data
collected since 2016. There is also a more detailed examination of thirteen case studies
from a diverse sample of parliaments. In 2019, a draft version of this paper was shared
with Secretaries General from around the world; dozens have provided valuable
feedback. I wish to thank most warmly all parliaments that have contributed to this
publication and have had a hand in its production.
More autonomous parliamentary administrations usually lead to stronger and more
resilient parliaments, especially in the face of uncertainty. The parliamentary response to
the current COVID-19 pandemic has only strengthened that view. Many parliaments have
been able to adapt their working modalities quickly so as to continue their representative,
legislative and oversight work. This is in no small measure thanks to parliamentary
administrations.
I hope this paper will be an additional resource to enable parliaments to serve the people
they represent more effectively. I invite you to share it widely and hope it will provide
tangible benefits to your developmental efforts.
Yours sincerely,
Martin Chungong
Secretary General