Officially opening a three-day workshop for Members of Parliament on deepening democracy in Lesotho held at the National Convention center on Tuesday 20 August,2002, the Speaker said it is important for different views represented in
Parliament not to compete but to complement one another saying that multi-partism is a most welcome development in a democratic dispensation. She mentioned that the workshop would not have been organized at a proper time when members of Parliament are faced with challenges placed before them by the electorate.

She further urged members to take up the challenge, rise above their personal differences, party politics and unite for some great purpose which is to rethink strategies about how to advance the interest of the nation. She concluded by saying that while parliament has a role to serve the nation, empowerment such as the one to be offered at the workshop is vital to strengthen their ability to deliver to the nation.

Speaking at the same occasion, the United Nations Development Programme  (UNDP) Resident Representative to Lesotho Ms Scholarstica Kimaryo said the complex challenges facing the two houses of Parliament in the five years they are in authority in terms of achieving economic growth and development that reinforce sustainable development cannot be under-estimated. She said the reduction of poverty, human development, impact of globalization, regional integration, HIV/AIDS as well as Lesotho's diverse but fragile environment demands the kind of leadership and governance that have to demonstrate innovation in bringing legacy with the present and future development needs of the country.

The Resident Rrpresentative further said these challenges provide the contextual reality within which parliament must exist, adding that in that context, the workshop will seek to cover, among others, acquiring a collective, critical understanding of the challenges facing Lesotho. She said the workshop will further refer to improvements, re-engineering of Parliament business processes and other identified needs intended to improve the capacities of members and the efficiency and effectiveness of the Parliament as an institution.

Meanwhile, the workshop has been organized by the UNDP in fulfillment of its promise to support post- election efforts to strengthen democracy in Lesotho. Participants at the workshop are members of the National Assembly and Senate.

20 August,2002