The IPU facilitates parliamentary diplomacy and empowers parliaments and parliamentarians to promote peace, democracy and sustainable development around the world.
Nearly every country in the world has some form of parliament. Parliamentary systems fall into two categories: bicameral and unicameral. Out of 190 national parliaments in the world, 78 are bicameral (156 chambers) and 112 are unicameral, making a total of 268 chambers of parliament with some 44,000 members of parliament. IPU membership is made up of 180 national parliaments
Throughout the year, the IPU and its Members organize many events for parliamentarians to exchange good practices, acquire the latest information and identify avenues for action.
The IPU has been collecting data on parliaments since its inception in 1889, including information on women’s participation in politics since 1945. In this section, discover the IPU's knowledge bank for and about parliaments.
Regional Seminar on Achieving the Sustainable Development Goals for the IPU’s Twelve Plus Geopolitical Group
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Lisbon Portugal
Summary
The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are the principal starting point in attaining a sustainable and better quality environment where citizens can develop and realize their potential fully. The IPU Member Parliaments are committed to improving and furthering mechanisms to reach these goals by leveraging their legislative, oversight, budgetary appropriation, and representation functions. The IPU is supporting these efforts by providing a platform to facilitate the exchange of experiences and best practices among parliaments. To this purpose, seminars to promote SDGs implementation have been organized in all regions.
This will be the second seminar for the IPU’s Twelve Plus Geopolitical Group, following a first seminar held in Israel in 2018. It will aim to further define the opportunities and challenges facing parliaments of the Group in implementing the SDGs, with special emphasis on heightening understanding about how parliaments can institutionalize the SDGs, promote convergence between the 2030 Agenda and national action plans and build coherence around the SDGs at the policy level.