WAFAQI MOHTASIB PRESIDES OVER THE ASIAN OMBUDSMAN ASSOCIATION’S ANNUAL MEETING AT ISTANBUL.

July 2, 2024   AOA News Letter
  • Wafaqi Mohtasib Presides Over the Asian Ombudsman Association’s Annual Meeting at Istanbul
  • Calls for Greater Sharing of Experiences to Promote Good Governance

The Wafaqi Mohtasib (Ombudsman), Mr. Ejaz Ahmad Qureshi has said that Ombudsman Institutions constitute a global fraternity which can play a very effective role in improving the quality of life for the common man through better governance.

He was addressing the 25thAnnual meeting of the Board of Directors (BoD) of the Asian Ombudsman Association (AOA) as its current President at Istanbul (Republic of Turkiye).

He said that the objectives and purposes of the establishment of the Ombudsman Institution has a direct bearing on the realization of the overall goals, principally the protection and promotion of fundamental rights and good governance in all spheres of life.

Mr. Qureshi emphasized the need for greater sharing of experiences and best practices to the mutual advantage of all stakeholders. “The commonly shared objectives are worth striving for and we should make a conscious effort for their realization”, he observed. He expressed the confidence that such exchanges amongst the Ombuds Institutions would lead to further refining and streamlining the systems and procedures for addressing mal-administration, bureaucratic bottlenecks and systemic issues.

The Board, in its deliberations, took stock of the ongoing activities and decided to further step-up cooperation in core areas, expressing satisfaction over the mutuality of perception evolved in the meeting. It said that improvement in the quality of life of the common man would ultimately help realize the objectives for which the body was created. It also considered measures for instituting AOA Calendar of Activities and upgrading facilities at the AOA Resource Centre established in Islamabad.

Asian Ombudsman Association (AOA) is a 47-Member strong professional body of the Ombudsmen in the Asian region representing more than two thirds of the world population. Its Board of Directors meets annually in one of the member states. The 25th meeting of the Board, held at Istanbul, on 28 June, 2024 was attended by heads of Ombudsman institution in Azerbaijan, China, Hong Kong, Iran, Japan, Korea, Pakistan, Tatarstan and Turkiye.