In his speech at the Annual Conference of Speakers of African Parliaments in Johannesburg, South Africa, the Speaker of the National Assembly of Senegal, El Malick Ndiaye, called for strengthening the role of parliaments in African integration.

"Africa has immense potential. But to fully unlock this potential, we must transform our parliaments into true levers of integration," he said at the beginning of his speech.

Before continuing: "As legislators who are the only ones authorized to pass laws in our respective countries, it is our privilege and responsibility to accelerate African integration."

"In Senegal, like most of the countries represented here, the Constitution clearly states, in Article 95, that the President of the Republic negotiates international commitments, ratifies them and possibly approves them with the authorization of the National Assembly," he said.

Through this provision, he said, it appears clearly that Parliament plays an essential, even unavoidable, role in the vitality of the foreign policy of our States.

El Malick emphasized that in this intercontinental integration plan, parliaments, each according to its environment and particularities, must fully assume their role in domestication by advocating for the transformation of commitments made at the continental level into effective and applicable national law in our countries, but also to ensure the implementation of commitments, the accountability of governments, transparency towards the people, the integration of Agenda 2063 and the model laws of the Pan-African Parliament into legislative standards and frameworks and, finally, coordination and sharing with national parliaments on the results of the African Union summits.

He also recalled that most of the African Union treaties and protocols suffer from conceptual flaws and delays in ratification, domestication and effective monitoring. "Parliamentary action must bring political will for their effective implementation," he said.

He also indicated that several texts already ratified are still struggling to be fully implemented, which constitutes a "negative impact" on the effectiveness of integration.

For Mr. Ndiaye, parliaments must not limit themselves to ratifications, they must also monitor, control and evaluate the effective implementation of commitments made by governments so that African integration becomes a reality in Africa.

"Our role in this area must be strengthened. First, we must ensure the necessary legislative harmonization so that the African Union treaties become realities in our countries, from the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) to the Malabo Protocol on the Pan-African Parliament, and establish a true culture of oversight that requires our executives to be accountable not only for the signing of agreements, but especially for their concrete implementation, but also to restore confidence in citizens who do not always understand the gap between major African decisions and their effects on their daily lives," he explained.

"Parliaments are the keystone, the bridge between the aspirations of peoples and the commitments of states. Therefore, bringing the African Union treaties to life means bringing African integration to life," he assured, adding that parliamentary diplomacy must serve solidarity, equality and sustainability on a global scale.

He also invited the panelists to share their experiences, visions and proposals to help identify ways for African parliaments to become drivers of continental integration.

"Senegal, faithful to its pan-African commitment, will continue to work for an integrated, prosperous and peaceful Africa," he concluded his speech.