The CPA Secretary-General

The Secretary-General, Dr William F. Shija

Dr Shija has a long been associated with the CPA in his capacity as an MP and as Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee in the Parliament of Tanzania.   

Dr William F. Shija

Born 28 April 1947; married to Mrs. Getruda Peter Shija; 5 children; Education: Howard University, Washington D.C. - PhD & MA in Mass Communication; BA in Journalism; Postgraduate Diploma in Journalism, New Delhi; Dip. Ed., Chang’ombe Education College, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.

Former Member, National Assembly of Tanzania, 1990-2005;  Minister: of Industry & Trade, 1997 -1998; of Energy & Minerals, 1994-1995; of Information & Broadcasting, 1992-1994; of Science, Technology & Higher Education, 1990 -1992; Regional Commissioner for Mwanza, 1994-1995; Principal Lecturer Nyegezi Social Development College, 1988 -1990; Lecturer Nyegezi Social Development College, 1978 -1982; Tutor – Civil Service College, 1972; Senior Instructor- Tabora Secretarial College, 1972-76.

He also served as Chairman, Foreign Affairs Committee, Tanzania National Assembly(1999-2005); Member and Chairman, Committee on Education, Culture, Tourism and Human Resources, Pan African Parliament (2004-2005). He has authored numerous academic, government and parliamentary policy papers in political economy, education, communications and development issues. Also, Head, African Union Observer Team at the Malawi 2004 Presidential and Parliamentary General Elections.

He is the CPA's Chief Executive Officer, responsible for the interpretation and implementation of its policies and the enhancement of its activities and is in charge of the CPA Secretariat located at Suite 700, Westminster House, 7 Millbank, London SW1P 3JA.

Previous Conferences and Events: Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM), Kampala, Uganda, 2007 and Port-of-Spain, Trinidad and Tobago, 2009; Perth, Australia, 2011;Centre for Democratic Institutions (CDI), Goroka, Papua New Guinea, 2007; Workshops: Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) Standing Orders, Antigua and Barbuda, 2007; Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), Paris, 2007 and 2008; Commonwealth Speakers and Presiding Officers Conference (CSPOC), London, United Kingdom, 2008 and New Delhi, India, 2010; Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU), Bali, 2007; Workshop on Government and Opposition – West Africa, Abuja, Nigeria, 2008; Wilton Park Conference, Sussex, 2008;14^th Biennial Conference of Presiding Officers and Clerks for the Caribbean, the Americas and the Atlantic, Saint Lucia, 2008; Consultation with Commonwealth Finance Ministers - Financial Crisis and Trade, Commonwealth Foundation and Center of Concern, Washington, D.C., 2009; Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) Parliamentary Conference on the Global Economic Crisis, Geneva, 2009; National Conference of States and Legislatures (NCSL), Philadelphia, USA, 2009; Session of the Steering Committee of the Parliamentary Conference on the World Trade Organization (WTO), Geneva, Switzerland, 2009; International Conferences: World Bank Institute and United Nations Development Programme (WBI/UNDP) Parliamentary Benchmarks and Self-Assessment, Paris, France, 2010; First meeting of the Society of Clerks-At The Table, Africa Region, Ghana, 2011; Small Islands Developing States (SIDS) & Climate Change Study Group, Zanzibar, Tanzania 2011; 36th Conference of the Caribbean, Americas and Atlantic Region, Grenada, 2011; Global conference for the role of parliament in governance of oil, gas and mineral resources, joint event-Revenue Watch Institute, Parliamentary Centre and Deutsche Gesellschaft (RWI/PC/GIZ) Accra, Ghana, 2011; Launch of the Benchmarks for democratic legislatures in Southern Africa (SADC-PF) Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe, 2011; 125^th IPU Assembly and Related meetings, Bern, Switzerland, 2011; Governance and NGOs: Positive Leadership Meeting, London, 2012; 7th Plenary Session of Parliamentary of Assembly of Mediterranean (PAM), Malta, 2012.