Members of Senate workshop on the National Reforms

As the Kingdom of Lesotho continues in its journey of the national reforms processes aimed at creating lasting political stability, The National Reforms Authority convened a 3-day workshop with members of the senate, to create a common understanding on the proposals contained in the 11th Amendment to the Constitution Bill, known as the Omnibus Constitutional Bill.

With support from UNDP and the EU, the workshop that was officially opened on the 4th of July in Maseru, could help pave way for the Senators to process the Bill swiftly.

The Senate of Lesotho which is the upper chamber of the Parliament comprising of twenty-two Principal Chiefs and eleven other Senators, has the key responsibility to debate and consent on the bill, which must be passed by both chambers of parliament.

Despite the senate members raising a few areas of concerns on some of the contents of the bill, there is still optimism and consensus over the need to reform and to fast-track the processing of the Omnibus Constitutional Bill.

Speaking at the workshop, the President of Senate, Honourable Mamonaheng Mokitimi, expressed her positivity that the highly anticipated Omnibus Constitutional Bill will indeed bring peace, stability and efficiency on service delivery once passed into a law.

With the window of opportunity before the end of term of the Parliament getting smaller, key stakeholders have urged on the need for the concerned parties to put their differences aside and focus on the national interests that will pave way for the reforms within the different sectors.

Speaking at the opening event for the workshop, the EU Head of Delegation, H.E. Paola Amadei, said: “The reforms are a promise for a better future which will bring in more political stability, transparency, accountability of governance, and further delay of the approval could potentially be the end of the process without anything or little to show”.

The UN Resident Coordinator, Amanda Mukwashi also expressed her optimism that the workshop has provided an opportunity for the Members of the Senate to have a comprehensive insight on what is contained in the document, to make meaningful contributions during the formal debate on Bill that is now before Parliament.

The Government of Lesotho with support from the UN, and in partnership with the EU and other stakeholders are working to support the implementation of the National Reforms Programme that will help steer the kingdom towards greater peace and stability, by improving the judiciary, security forces, economy, media, public service, parliament, and constitution.