Madrid, Nov. 27, 2021, SPA -- The meetings of the General Assembly of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) in its 143rd session, and the Governing Council of the Union and its standing committees, have begun in Madrid, Spain with the participation of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia with a delegation headed by Speaker of the Shura Council of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia Sheikh Dr. Abdullah bin Mohammed bin Ibrahim Al Al-Sheikh, in the presence of the King of Spain, King Felipe VI, President of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) Duarte Pacheco, President of the Congress of Deputies of Spain Meritxell Batet, President of the Senate of Spain Ander Gil, and the heads of parliaments and delegations of 179 countries around the world. King of Spain, Felipe VI, began the opening ceremony with a speech in which he welcomed the participants, looking forward to the parliaments achieving the desired goals in the current session of the International Union, especially as they are held despite the coronavirus pandemic, hoping that parliaments will enhance achieving consensus and increasing cooperation between countries in this regard. In his speech, he promised that taking the necessary health measures is a very important step to restore social and economic life in various countries, indicating that parliaments extend their function to be centers for decision-making, building agreements and achieving important consensus at this time, stressing his confidence in these intensive meetings that would lead to concrete and productive results and would be an appropriate place to discuss the challenges and difficulties facing parliaments. During the meetings of the current session which is hosted by the Spanish Parliament, within a general framework, the world’s parliamentarians are discussing contemporary challenges facing democracy and building society, while the permanent and subsidiary committees of the Union discuss the role of parliaments in addressing urgent issues related to the increase of extremism and the spread of misinformation through social media, in addition to exchanging views on working effectively to ensure inclusive decision-making that represents all segments, and discussing the most appropriate ways to deal with various threats. This session will also provide parliamentarians with an opportunity to agree on a number of issues related to gender bias, harassment and violence against women and contribute to achieving sustainable development. The delegations participating in the current session of the Inter-Parliamentary Union are considering adopting the new IPU strategy for the period from 2022 to 2026, which aims to refocus the work of the Union in the next five years on a number of areas and files of global interest and focus, especially with regard to climate change, human rights, equality, peace and security as well as sustainable development. The Shura Council delegation is participating in the intensive meetings taking place in the current session at the level of the permanent committees to discuss the issues raised in sustainable development, finance, trade, democracy, human rights, international peace and security as well as United Nations affairs, in addition to the topics that will be raised by other sub-forums that will be held on the sidelines of the meetings. Also, the participation of the Secretary General of the Saudi Shura Council Mohammed bin Dakhil Al-Mutairi, in the meetings of the secretaries general of national parliaments, it is expected that these meetings would result in reaching decisions that address the issues on the agenda of the current session in the final statement in the coming days. The delegation of the Council, headed by the Speaker of the Shura Council, includes Deputy Speaker of the Council, Dr. Mishaal bin Fahm Al-Salami, Secretary General of the Shura Council Mohammed bin Dakhil Al-Mutairi, and other members of the Council. -- SPA 16:21 LOCAL TIME 13:21 GMT 0014 www.spa.gov.sa/w1656853