Chairman Price Leads HDAC Delegation to Partner Nations Liberia and Kenya
The House Democracy Assistance Commission (HDAC) sent a delegation of six House members to partner nations Liberia and Kenya, with additional stops in Ghana, Democratic Republic of Congo, Malawi, and Mauritania from June 27 to July 7, 2008. The trip marked the Commission's twelfth congressional delegation since its establishment in 2005. Rep. David Price (D-NC) led the delegation, which included Reps. Lois Capps (D-CA), Keith Ellison (D-MN), Mel Watt (D-NC), and Brad Miller (D-NC).
This was the third visit to Liberia by an HDAC delegation and the second visit to Kenya. HDAC has partnered with the Liberian Congress to strengthen capacity for committee oversight and budgetary analysis, enhance constituent outreach, develop institutional resources such as independent research capabilities, and improve legislative-executive relations. HDAC's partnership with the National Assembly of Kenya has focused on strengthening its oversight role vis-à-vis the executive branch, supporting the creation of a budget office in the legislature, strengthening budgetary analysis, revising procedural rules to foster a productive environment, and strengthening transparency and ethics rules. The delegation conducted peer-to-peer exchanges addressing each of these themes.
The delegation's first day in Liberia was spent in the Grand Bassa County seat of Buchanan. The delegation attended an ecumenical church service, visited a U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) literacy program at the USAID-renovated county administration building, met with the national legislators from the county, and attended a town hall meeting.
After returning to the capital city of Monrovia, the delegation also met with House Speaker Alex Tyler, Senate President Pro Tempore Isaac Nyenabo, and about half of the 94 legislators. The U.S. lawmakers also held a daylong training session in the Liberian Congress' Capitol Building. In addition, staff from the Congressional Research Service (CRS) and the House Budget Committee provided training for over 40 legislative researchers and staff on parliamentary research, policy analysis, and techniques to evaluate the executive branch budget and develop alternatives.
In Kenya, the delegation met with a broad array of MPs, including several MPs from the parties of the grand coalition that was formed to resolve the post-election crisis in December 2007: the Party of National Unity of President Mwai Kibaki and the Orange Democratic Movement of Prime Minister Raila Odinga. The delegation also met with the President, the Prime Minister, Vice President Kalonzo Musyoka, and Speaker Kenneth Marende. As in Liberia, HDAC staff conducted a number of trainings and exchanges with parliamentary staff focusing on budget analysis, legislative research, and rules of procedure.
In addition to government meetings, HDAC members visited development projects supported by the Kenyan National Assembly and the U.S. Government. Reps. Capps, Ellison, and Miller visited a school in the town of Thika in the Juja constituency, accompanied by a local Member. Reps. Price, Watt, and Cooper visited Carolina for Kibera, a North Carolina-based NGO that conducts public health, education and conflict resolution programs in Kibera, Africa's largest slum.