Every year during the General Assembly, the IPU organizes a parliamentary hearing for members of parliament to exchange views with United Nations officials, representatives of the UN diplomatic community, scholars and leading academics.
The meeting was originally designed as a briefing session on a variety of topics. It has now evolved into a substantive debate about the main issues on the international agenda. The conclusions and recommendations of the hearing provide parliamentary input into the work of United Nations bodies. In 2004, the General Assembly passed a resolution highlighting the parliamentary hearing as “a regular feature” of its proceedings.
The annual parliamentary hearing at the United Nations is organized in close cooperation with the relevant United Nations departments. They help to prepare background notes on the issues under consideration, focusing on their parliamentary dimension. The debates serve two main purposes. First, they help parliamentarians better understand United Nations decision-making processes and the status of negotiations on a variety of issues. Second, they make it possible for parliamentarians to convey to UN Member States their views based on their own national and local experiences.
Check our events page for forthcoming hearings!