During the week, a delegation of MPs from the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine joined thematic events in the Canadian Parliament and the Annual Session of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly in Montreal.
The delegation was joined by MPs Halyna Mykhailiuk, Deputy Chairperson of the Committee on Law Enforcement, Viktoriia Podhorna, Deputy Chairperson of the Committee on Digital Transformation, Chairperson of the Subcommittee on Development of Digital Society and Adaptation of Ukrainian Legislation to the EU Acquis, Implementation of Ukraine’s International Legal Obligations in the Field of European Integration, Anna Purtova, Deputy Chairperson of the Committee on Budget, Chairperson of the Subcommittee on State Investment Projects.
The Ukrainian delegation joined joint events with lawmakers from Latin America — from Argentina and Chile. Such events are significant for strengthening ties with the region to gradually and systematically establish interparliamentary cooperation between countries. Members of the delegations exchanged experience on a legislative basis on gender-based violence, parliamentary codes of conduct, gender aspects of E-democracy, and gender equality and women’s political participation.
The delegation also held meetings with Canadian government officials and parliamentarians, the Senate Standing Committee on Ethics and Conflicts of Interest for Senators (CONF), the House of Commons Standing Committee on Procedures and Affairs (PROC), and the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Ukraine to Canada Yulia Kovaliv.
The visit, supported by the international parliamentary network of Women Legislators in Peace, Security and Defence (WLID), included a panel discussion on the evolution of political party governance and political party legislation.
During the discussion, the women MPs spoke about the specifics of the work of women MPs during the martial law regime in Ukraine, based on the materials of a study currently being prepared by the Agency for Legislative Initiatives as part of the Parliamentary Accountability of the Security Sector in Ukraine (PASS Ukraine) project. The research focuses on such aspects as changes in the lives of MPs after the full-scale invasion, gender differences and gender equality in the parliament given current challenges, changes in the work of the Verkhovna Rada and legislative activities during martial law.
The visit was part of the project “Parliamentary Accountability of the Security Sector in Ukraine” (PASS Ukraine), which the Agency implements together with the Parliamentary Centre, in cooperation with the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, and with the support of Canada’s Foreign Policy—Global Affairs Canada as part of the Peace and Stabilization Operations Program (PSOPs).
