The CPA Small Branches network comprises of Commonwealth jurisdictions with populations up to 1,000,000 and operates within the framework of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association. It is governed by an elected Chairperson and a Steering Committee of representatives from each of the CPA Regions within the CPA Small Branches network. Staff from the CPA Headquarters Secretariat support the network by coordinating activities alongside its members.
CPA Small Branches Steering Committee
The CPA Small Branches Steering Committee comprises of the CPA Small Branches Chairperson and nine Members who represent the nine Regions of the CPA that include Small Branches: Africa; Australia; Asia; British Islands and the Mediterranean; Canada; Caribbean, Americas and the Atlantic; India; Pacific; and South-East Asia.
The formation of the CPA Small Branches Steering Committee was approved and recommended by the CPA Executive Committee at its Mid-Year Meeting in Mauritius in 2018.
The current list of Regional Representatives on the CPA Small Branches Steering Committee are as follows:
- CPA Africa Region: Hon. Churchill Gill, MNA (Seychelles)
- CPA Australia Region: Hon. Mark Monaghan, MLA, Speaker of the Legislative Assembly (Northern Territory)
- CPA Asia Region: Hon. Eva Abdulla, MP (Maldives)
- CPA British Islands and Mediterranean Region: Hon. Juan Watterson, SHK, Speaker of the House of Keys (Isle of Man)
- CPA Canada Region: Mr Brian Warr, MHA (Newfoundland and Labrador)
- CPA Caribbean, Americas and Atlantic Region: Hon. Barbara Webster-Bourne, MHA, Speaker of the House of Assembly (Anguilla)
- CPA India Region: Shri Arun Kumar Upreti, MLA, Speaker of the Legislative Assembly (Sikkim)
- CPA Pacific Region: Hon. Lord Fakafanua, Speaker of the Legislative Assembly (Tonga)
- CPA South East Asia Region: Hon Rus’sele Eizan, MLA, Speaker of the State Legislature (Perlis)
CPA Small Branches Chairperson
The position of CPA Small Branches Chairperson was approved at the 60th Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference in Yaoundé, Cameroon in 2014 and the first elected Chairperson began in 2016. The CPA Small Branches Chairperson is elected at the CPA Small Branches Conference for a term of three years.